


Hell In One Man's Eyes

by Platypus4ever



Category: Hannibal (TV)
Genre: Blood Play, Creepy Hannibal, Hannibal is a Stalker, Hannibal is just one twisted Priest, Kidnapping, M/M, Manipulation, Masturbation, Mention of Child Abuse, Mention of Fanatism, Murders and Cannibalism, Obsession, Rape/Non-con Elements, Religious References, Sex in a Church, Sexual Fantasies with religious references, This is NOT an attempt to trash down religion, Torture, Whipping, confinment, erotic whipping, self-punishment
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-04-11
Updated: 2016-10-05
Packaged: 2018-06-01 17:27:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 16
Words: 41,144
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6529303
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Platypus4ever/pseuds/Platypus4ever
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Hannibal is a priest and a serial killer who murders and eats sinners. Unfortunately he finds himself tempted one day when he met Will Graham, a profiler investigating on his murders; one glance from him and Father Lecter starts to feel an obsession which torments him to no end.</p><p>Also posted on Fanfiction.Net under my other pen name Menea111</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Concupiscence

**Author's Note:**

> This work is inspired by Hunchback of Notre Dame (both book and movie) and the song Hellfire which totally rocks!

__

Father Lecter was, according to everyone, a smart and respectable man, as well as an excellent priest. He was a great preacher and knew how to listen to people and when he wouldn’t be working, he would behave like any gentleman of the world and respected people’s beliefs. He was very appreciated by his parishioners for his dedication to God and by some of the most mundane personalities of Baltimore for not pushing his faith into everyone’s throat and for his civility.

If only they knew…

True, Hannibal Lecter was a gentleman and valued the importance of good manners, and he truly believed in God. His vision of God was just quite…different. While he preached that God was all goodness, he didn’t believe it. To him, God was perfection in the way He could be as evil as He could be good, He had set an incredibly complex and entertaining game with mankind and even the Devil couldn’t side up with him, because even if Satan was the embodiment of all evil, it was God who wanted him that way and who decided of his place in the Universe. God decided of everything, he was wrath and revenge, powerful and rewarding only toward those he thought as deserving.

Hannibal thought himself as deserving, because he was playing God’s game. He was hunting and killing just like God, and the way he consumed human flesh just turned him into what God had wished him to become: a predator. It was God who decided he should be this way, after what happened to Mischa…

He remembered how after her death he questioned God’s existence and wondered why he let that happen. Then, when he found the men who hurt her, when he killed the first one, he realized why God let that happen: it had been a part of the game. God just set the events up and watched whether or not young Hannibal could be strong enough to protect his sister and he failed. The boy had his chances, and his life would depend on whether he failed or succeeded. It was like flipping a coin. Now, after that failure, after the coin was flipped, God put him on the path of those murderers in order to make him understand that if he couldn’t be a loving big brother, he had to be a vengeful brother. So he killed those men and when one of them revealed that they made him eat a piece of his sister…Well Hannibal knew what God wanted him to become.

Yes, God did gave him a chance, Hannibal couldn’t blame God for what happened to Mischa, the Lord let him have his chance and he didn’t seize it. He  punished himself for that, from time to time, when he was alone in his home, Hannibal would just take his whip, one he possessed since years and would make his body feel the pain his soul still felt over Mischa’s death. He would also kill sinners, low and stupid people who were just greedy or libidinous for the very sake of it or who just didn’t get a thing about the Lord’s true nature. It wasn’t as satisfying as killing Mischa’s murderers but killing and eating sinners was incredibly enjoyable.

Every time he killed sinners, eat them and fooled the law enforcements he was beating someone at God’s great game and he was paying homage to the genius of it.

Overall, Hannibal was content with his existence. He had seen a lot of beautiful things in the world, his passion for art was always growing, he could sometimes met interesting people and he had plenty of sinners to kill. His celibacy vows weren’t bothering him either, even if he had another vision of God, he still believed a priest shouldn’t lower himself to low carnal needs. Eating flesh was enough for him, sex had never been a very important thing in his life, he had experienced it when he was young and sometimes he did feel desire rose in him, but it wasn’t hard to push it away and if it was a little too strong, mortifying his flesh was efficient against it.

The day he saw Will Graham, everything changed however.

The last person he murdered was a businessman named Carl Marlowe who stole a lot of money from a lot of people, and for the first time the FBI had the idea to come and interview him. The man was one of his parishioners and he would often confess to him, that’s how Hannibal learned of all his sin and decided Carl had to die. The man just so petty, running after money like a dog after a car, he didn’t even really know what to do with it. Usually, Hannibal avoided killing the people who came at his church or who would confess to him, in order to avoid suspicions but he did an exception. First, he saw only agent Crawford and barely noticed the other man walking with him:

“Father Lecter?”

“Yes? May I help you?”

“You could, I’m Jack Crawford from the FBI and this is Will Graham…”

It was only when he pronounced the name that Hannibal noticed the second man and immediately found him handsome, really handsome. Yet he turned his attention back to agent Crawford and listened as he explained how they found Carl dead.

“His wife told us he went to you a lot recently, do you know anything that could help us?”

“He went to me to confess, you know I can’t tell you anything.”

“We know secret of confession is something very important to you,” agent Crawford said, “but with that kind of crime we need to know as much as possible.”

“Did he look tormented recently? Did he talk to you about something out of confession?”

The priest looked at the profiler to answer his question and for a moment, their eyes met, before Will turned away. Then, Hannibal was startled by a strange sensation: his head felt a little lighter as if he had vertigo and something in his chest somehow ached.  It didn’t last more than a second or two but it was enough to stun him. He found the man handsome already but it wasn’t more than admiration for fine human features, until he actually crossed those blue eyes and then…It wasn’t as if Hannibal had stared right into his soul or something like that, but he hadn’t seen how beautiful the man really was until he saw his expressive eyes.

It became actually hard not to show anything and act as if he was simply worried because of those murders. He had to stop his eyes from devouring Will Graham, he just looked at him from time to time, and he truly did found the man gorgeous. He longed to cross his stare again but for some reason the profiler refused to look straight at him. Instead he gazed at his jaw line, at his lips, his dark hair and his lean frame.

It was wrong, really wrong and he knew it but he just couldn’t stop himself and for the very first time since long, he felt lost and unsure because a part of him wanted more and the other wanted it all to stop. It was really rare for Hannibal and he really hated it. When the two men left, he looked at Will Graham leaving and he started to hate the man, as much as he desired him. Everything was fine in his life, he had a purpose, he had followers and preys, no one suspected him and now…It took only one brief encounter to shake him completely, he didn’t know what this agent did to make him feel that way but it as efficient!

He locked himself in his office, tried to pray but just couldn’t find the strength because each time he would close his eyes he would visualize Will again. God would just throw him in the pit of hell! He was a God of wrath and revenge, and he wouldn’t like one of his most faithful followers to lower himself to such things. But that man…His body was desirable but not only…For the few words they exchanged, it seemed that he was smart, of course Hannibal couldn’t judge right away but he was pretty sure there was something special about him and it was making things harder. It just woke up a hunger he didn’t feel since long.

He did his best to chase away those thoughts. It was wrong, on many levels, not only he shouldn’t lust for another man, but he shouldn’t assume that this agent did anything to make him feel that way; after all he was just doing his job and nothing else. He didn’t behave in a seductive way or said anything suggestive, he had been even a little distant and cold…But strangely this coldness was just giving the man something somewhat inaccessible that…No! Stop…It was only in his mind, Graham didn’t try to seduce him, he had to calm down.

Was it God or the Devil playing with him right now? He wasn’t sure but he wasn’t about to lose so easily. It shouldn’t be that hard anyway; he wouldn’t see him again after all. He told them all he knew, they had no reasons to come back.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone! I had recently an idea and it could be interesting, it's a proposition I would like to make. To my dismay, there is absolutely no Hannigram wid with the song Hellfire, and I couldn't make a vid for the life of me. So here is what I propose: I will write a fic to whoever makes one and post it on Youtube. It would be a fic on Hannibal, and you can ask me almost any kind of fic you like, except: m-preg, infantilism, a victim falling for their rapist or crude sex scene. Right now it's all that comes into my mind, but I might have other objections, though I'm generally open-minded. You can ask me the pairing you want, even threesome, it can be a one-shot or multi-chapter. 
> 
> I don't know if anyone will be interested but it can be a nice exchange. In the meantime I hope you enjoyed this chapter, don't hesitate to comment.


	2. Mortification

Hannibal’s night had been difficult, yet after some time he efficiently pushed away the thoughts about the agent, the memory of his face was even starting to fade. He was pretty sure it would be alright, his desire for that man had been stronger than usual, but it wasn’t impossible to beat. 

The next day however, as he was done giving the second mass of the Sunday, he saw Will Graham entering the church. It was the evening, it would be the last mass and the church would close soon. He felt his guts tighten, and felt a stinging sensation in his lower belly. The agent was simply standing with his arm crossed, waiting for people to get out, giving time to Hannibal to observe him while saying goodbye to some old ladies who praised him for his sermon. Oh he was maybe even more gorgeous than he remembered. The church emptied itself and because he wanted to control the situation he went to the agent first, showing nothing of what he was feeling, being polite as usual.

“Agent Graham? What owe me the pleasure?”

“Good evening father. I came here because I might have other questions for you.”

“Of course. Do you want to sit down in my office?”

“No, it’s fine, I won’t be long.”

Lecter crossed his stare again accidentally and felt the same desire, still so intense, maybe even more…He was actually close enough for his sharp nose to grasp his scent. It hadn’t been possible yesterday with Crawford’s own smells interfering, but now they were alone and he could smell him only. He felt aroused again, even if his smell wasn’t anything really special, it was enjoyable, he smelled like the woods under the fresh snow…Without really thinking, he interrupted Graham as he was asking his first question:

“You’re not fond of eye contact.”

“Uh…No indeed, I’m not.”

“Why is that?”

“I find it distracting, you either see too much or not enough. It’s kind of hard to focus when you’re also scanning someone’s eyes at the same time.”

As he was saying that, Will stared into Lecter’s eyes longer than he did before, and it was enough to make the priest’s head spin and lighten while a shiver ran though his body. Those intense blue eyes, pained and vibrant at the same time, with this cold and unreachable air that promised punishment to the ones he would pursue…It was somehow angelic. Yet Hannibal felt more than the respect and admiration an angelic beauty should have inspired him, he was also feeling lust, longing to see those blue eyes suddenly soften under…

He felt his body reacting to the thoughts and focused back on what the man was saying.

“Among your parishioner, has one of them been skipping confession a lot, or showed very strong insurance in his faith and virtue? And when I speak of insurance I mean a sense of superiority compared to the others.”

“You’re thinking about the killer?”

“Yes.”

“Uh…I don’t see anyone in particular.”

“I’m not talking about someone who showed off, he keeps a low profile but takes religion very seriously and yet won’t question his own behavior. He probably showed himself disdainful toward other parishioners but never sanctimonious, he doesn’t go out of his limits.”

Indeed Hannibal didn’t feel the need to confess and felt superior and even if as a priest he did show himself sanctimonious, he was always very careful not to go out of limits. This agent wasn’t about to catch him, but he had to admit he wasn’t doing bad.

“But that’s strange,” Hannibal said, “you said he keeps a low profile?”

“Yes…”

“But those fanatics usually expose their faith and thoughts to the world.”

“This one is particular. A lot of killers who kills for religious or political matters feel the need to claim their work or think they can’t get caught because God protect them. This one does believe in God but he is still lucid enough to protect himself and knows that if he doesn’t play cautiously, he could get caught and stopped. His vision of God isn’t the one fanatics usually have, for him God has a part of evil in him and plays with humans and he is not a servant but just another player, smaller but a player still. He doesn’t think of what he does as good but legitimate, at least in God’s eyes. As a player he has to keep his game for himself.”

Indeed, it was pretty much what he felt. It was quite fascinating how that man was able to know him like this. Lecter wasn’t scared by this, the profiler was far from suspecting him, on contrary it was satisfying to hear Will talk about him like that, to have those words rolling out of those lips… Hannibal hadn’t take sex so seriously in his life because he didn’t find it really worth it, there was no intellectual dimension to it and it wasn’t as powerful as eating human flesh. Sure there was pleasure and intimacy in sex but he couldn’t share such a level of intimacy with someone inferior to him and Hannibal hardly found a lot of people who stimulated him intellectually and physically. Except that now, Will Graham was able to attract his body and mind…

The man was gorgeous but he was also smart, and it was only intensifying his desire, if Will had been nothing but an empty shell, spite could have killed lust but no, he wanted him even more.

This intelligence only made him more beautiful, even more angelic. That scent of cold forest with those cold eyes, those fine features and this slender yet manly frame and this strange natural rough grace this man possessed were turning him on. The priest was longing to look into his eyes more but it was impossible to cross his stare and it was just teasing him to no end. When they were done talking, Will just swiftly passed the tip of his tongue on his lips in a thoughtful way, without even looking at Lecter, but the priest had the feeling this gesture was meant for him and for a moment he really considered the idea to reach out to the man and then…Then what?

Graham left at this moment, wishing the priest a good day and Hannibal almost felt humiliated. He had been subjected to that almost painful teasing and the man was just leaving him like that, as if nothing happened? He had to keep his mask, he had to control himself but the urge to rush to the profiler was greater and greater.

He could still run after him, hit the back of his skull to knock him off, then he would lock him in the church and…Lecter clearly saw himself touching the skin, kissing those lips and lie himself over the unconscious man…No! He had to stop this fantasy, Graham was already gone anyway.

Hannibal tried to reason himself again, thinking that it was only in his head but this time he couldn’t convince himself of that. Graham came after the second mass, the evening when the night was falling, a moment of the day more appropriate for lustful thoughts; he came alone without Crawford or any other colleague to distract him, and the way he licked his lips and the way he avoided his eyes after letting him look at it…Hannibal was sure he actually plunged his gaze into his for a moment only to tease and torment him even more after, so he would know what he was missing. And the way he left right after licking lips, just another way to tease him…He visualized the tongue caressing his lips and in Lecter’s mind, the gesture which had been thoughtful and innocent was becoming sensual, a clear sign of enticement…And the way he just give him a glimpse of his powerful mind, not enough to know him but enough to want him, to fascinate him even more…

That angelic beauty didn’t mean holiness; Will Graham was a fallen angel, like the Devil himself, coming to tempt him with a forbidden fruit to take him away from his own heaven. He was angelic and demonic at the same time…Exactly what Hannibal loved…

Chasing away the thoughts were harder this time, this second encounter had been more intimate and intense for the priest. He knew what he would need to do; he really needed to chase this desire.

He went home and started to mortify his flesh; it was one of those rare times when he didn’t do it because of Misha. The whip bit harder than usual it seemed. His thoughts started to wander, he thought of the temptation of Saint Anthony in the desert, how the man who decided to live as a hermit had been tormented and tempted by demons all the whiles. Many stories, many paintings had been done on that subject, some said the demons tried to scare him, or to offer him gold, but others would take the form of beautiful naked women in order to make him surrender to carnal desires. He felt like Saint Anthony, he was trying to get closer to God when suddenly Lucifer was trying to lose him.

As he was whipping himself, he couldn’t help but imagine Will Graham coming here in his house, undressing slowly for him and asking for his touch lasciviously, just like the succubus tempting St Anthony. In spite of his intention to kill the desire, he felt aroused and the whipping didn’t stop it, on contrary it…It was sending jolts of strange pleasure he never felt before while doing this. It intensified the fantasy and the desire.

Hannibal stopped for a moment to whip himself and tried to gather his spirit but he couldn’t stop his imagination. In an instant he saw the other man slowly unbuttoning his shirt and visualized himself pushing _, crushing_ Will against the wall, kissing him while they would both run their hands over each other’s bodies... It hit him like crazy and he felt the sensation stir in his lower belly. Damn it! He tried to whip himself again but it was no use. The fantasy only intensified as he imagined how the man would look, whimper and pant under him…He imagined Will whispering his name… _Hannibal_ …Just like earlier, he felt the whipping wasn’t killing the desire anymore, quite the contrary…It was becoming pleasurable, instead of pushing the thoughts away, it intensified it, the pain was feeling good and…He knew he had to stop whipping himself but he just couldn’t, he wanted this…It was too good to resist…

_God forgive me…_

He fell on his knees after the pleasure reached its peak, panting and his head light and spinning. What was happening to him? He looked at the whip with deception. If this couldn’t even help him anymore…It was dooming him instead…He showered and tended his wounds while thinking. What should he do? He kneeled down before the Christ and started to pray and think. One obvious way would be to kill Will Graham, very simply. Yet he didn’t know…Maybe he wasn’t supposed to do that, he had the feeling there was something more about that man than the sinners he usually killed. He was above his usual preys; he had to know more of him. He wanted more and he felt that the Lord wanted him to play his game instead of ending it in such a simple way. He wouldn’t kill Will Graham, at least not for now.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone! I had recently an idea and it could be interesting, it's a proposition I would like to make. To my dismay, there is absolutely no Hannigram wid with the song Hellfire, and I couldn't make a vid for the life of me. So here is what I propose: I will write a fic to whoever makes one and post it on Youtube. It would be a fic on Hannibal, and you can ask me almost any kind of fic you like, except: m-preg, infantilism, a victim falling for their rapist or crude sex scene. Right now it's all that comes into my mind, but I might have other objections, though I'm generally open-minded. You can ask me the pairing you want, even threesome, it can be a one-shot or multi-chapter. 
> 
> I don't know if anyone will be interested but it can be a nice exchange. In the meantime I hope you enjoyed this chapter, don't hesitate to comment.


	3. Confession

 

The next day passed slowly, Hannibal found Will’s address and decided he would drove to his house this evening after closing the church, just to see where he lived. His impatience to go there made him want nothing but lock himself in his office and see no one, but he couldn’t, people couldn’t see that something was tormenting him. When he eventually closed the church, he sighed in relief before going to his car, then he drove to Will’s isolated house. He didn’t stop there; it could seem suspicious to wander here with no reason. He just caught a glance of the house in order to see where Will lived, it could be useful. It had been hard to resist the urge to stop and approach it, approach that place in which the one he wanted lived. It was stupid he knew it, he waited the whole day for a quick glance, but he couldn’t stop himself.

Two days later, the priest went to one of Graham’s conference about profiling, careful not to be seen by him. He was already pretty sure that Will was intelligent, seeing him talk about psychology only confirmed it, it was obvious that he wasn’t social but he was good to teach and talk in public. It was great to listen to him and look at him this whole time. During the whole time he wanted to get up and go to him, take him out of that room and…He stopped those thoughts, it wasn’t the moment at all. He focused on the subject instead, it was interesting, it was about obsessional behavior in crimes. While listening, he got another image in his head, not sexual this time: he could see Will in his living room, sitting in a chair and talking with him casually about the murders he committed. He imagined Will knowing and accepting who he was, and they would discuss that together. Lecter never had anyone he could consider as a real friend.

He spoke with some students in order to know more about him, using all his power in manipulation in order not to look suspect. Apparently, Will Graham was unstable but a very good teacher, his students liked him obviously and he was pretty sure one of his female students had a crush on him. He couldn’t blame the young woman. Those little chats weren’t really satisfying however; the students didn’t know much about their teacher.

Yet he was still rewarded as he soon made a discovery that elated him: Will Graham knew Alana Bloom, one of Hannibal’s friends.

Though he was a priest, Hannibal was interested in psychology; he read about it a lot and sometimes attended classes and conferences since years for personal interest. That’s how he met Alana, a woman who had his esteem, though her intelligence was limited, she wasn’t as stupid as most people, and she was well-mannered and honest. He saw her and Will talking at the end of the conference, he had been careful not to be seen, though he could justify his presence here, he didn’t want Will to see him right now, it could appear strange to the profiler who could obviously read well in criminals’ minds.

So instead of going directly to Alana he called her one evening for a dinner, pretending he wanted to talk about the death of Carl Marlowe. Of course, Alana accepted. He was pretty impatient though he did his best not to show it, he was pretty sure that Doctor Bloom would be of a significant help. While they were around the table, he simply started by explaining her that Carl Marlowe was confessing to him since years now and his death had been a shock for everyone.

“How are you feeling about it?” She asked while taking a piece of beef (it was truly beef tonight).

“Quite sad, Carl wasn’t the best man I ever met, but he was still someone who trusted me and that I was used to see. Of course it’s not the first one to die, but usually, my parishioners don’t die in such circumstances.”

“When will you bury him?”

“Tomorrow, the FBI did everything they could in order to give the corpse back as soon as possible.”

“I see…”

“They asked me some questions. I feared I wasn’t helping a lot.”

“Really?”

“Yeah…Agent Crawford and Graham if I remember well, maybe you know them?”

“Will Graham?”

“Yes, maybe.”

“Oh I do.”

She fell silent and Hannibal felt something was upsetting her and it could be useful.

“Is something wrong?”

“Well…Will is a friend for me and he is unstable, not insane but fragile mentally speaking. He has…What you could call a gift, his empathic skills are very developed and he can put himself in the mind of anyone with some efforts, criminal minds in particular.”

Now, it was much clearer why Graham had been able to understand his motives while killing, Hannibal had to admit it was really interesting.

“It’s a rare gift, but I imagine it’s double-edged.”

“Oh yes, if Will gets too close it can be really disturbing.”

“You fear him to identify too much with the killers he tracks down?”

“I know Will would never be like them, he is not that kind of man. But, you know how too much exposure to some horrors can be damaging.”

_That depends on how you play God’s game. Sweet Alana…Still so naïve._

Hannibal somehow liked her, she was smart and refined and even though she was naïve, her honesty and goodness could be refreshing. Plus there were moments she could be really useful to him, like now. Though he wanted to ask more about him, he refrained himself, it could appear suspicious.

“You’re afraid not to be able to help him are you? I can understand, I often feel that way.”

“You’re not responsible for Marlowe’s death, Hannibal, it’s normal to feel guilty but I’m sure you did everything you could.”

“I know, I already told that to myself.”

They continued to discuss, he pretended to be saddened for Carl’s death and once or twice, Alana spoke of Graham by herself without being brought there by Hannibal. Now, the priest knew that Will wasn’t fond of shrinks at all and wasn’t only able to understand killers but was fascinated by them. When Alana, left, Hannibal thought of everything she said. He wanted to know more, what she said wasn’t enough yet; it was only giving him a slight peek of a mind which was probably much more complex than what she could see. Even with the little information she gave him, Alana made him realize something: if Graham could empathize with killers like this and if he really was fascinated by them, then he was liable to fall.

That thought was just delicious to Hannibal, making Graham fall just like he was making him fall…Maybe that was God’s new game with him. Maybe He didn’t send Will Graham to tempt Hannibal, but because He wanted to see if Hannibal was able to turn the profiler into something else…Lecter wished it was true…Still this desire was wrong. Even if God wanted Will to become a player like Hannibal, lusting for him was still wrong. But that face, that body, this, tormented, angelic, icy air, and this mind that only promised even more wonder... Hannibal couldn’t help but remember the fantasies he got last time and felt aroused again. His eyes wandered in the room and he saw the whip…

He felt tempted.

A part of him, the most wanton and depraved wanted the pleasure he felt last time he whipped himself while thinking of Will. Yet he knew it was wrong…He stood up and hesitantly took the whip. Maybe it would work this time? He tried to convince himself he was doing this not out of sexual want but to kill the lustful thoughts while undoing his shirt. The first blows of whip only brought pain and Hannibal didn’t if he should feel relieved or disappointed. However, as he heard the leather hitting his skin once again, he got an image in his mind.

Will Graham was standing in the room, his wrists tied with ropes hanging from the ceiling, shirtless and gagged…The thought made Hannibal shudder and the whip became pleasurable again. He imagined himself with his whip in his hands, walking slowly around the bound man, touching the skin softly before whipping violently the naked chest he could only imagine. He visualized Will flinching and tugging at his bonds but to no avail while he would whisper sensually at his ear: _There is no point trying to escape. You belong to me now, and I’ll punish you as much as I wish._ He shuddered again, imagining having that power over the agent was exciting him to no end, he whipped himself while whipping him in his mind. He saw clearly the agent’s back bleeding and he would lick the blood off before taking off the gag to enjoy the screams he would make…

Almost unconsciously Hannibal started to touch himself too, fantasying about Will’s knees giving up, his body only held by the rope, exhausted and in pain like a martyr…Hannibal would then untie the ropes and lay him down to ravish him as much as he wanted, punishment and pleasure in one act...

 Hannibal panted when he was done. His back was bleeding.

When he was done cleaning the mess he made, he felt the need to talk to someone about what he was feeling, yet the idea to let someone know was shameful. He didn’t want to let anyone know that he, Father Lecter, was lowering himself to such things, that the respected priest and gentleman he always showed could yield to lust like that. The only one who came in his mind for that was Bedelia, his psychiatrist (though she wasn’t a psychiatrist since a long time). But he didn’t want to let her know that, because like Alana, Bedelia was someone he esteemed and if he was to tell her what he was feeling he would be tempted to kill her to clear her mind from such knowledge. For now he had no desire to kill Bedelia.

Then, another solution appeared in his mind and he smiled; It was obvious, why didn’t he think about it sooner?

The next day, Hannibal entered a church, not his church but the one in which Father Lowry, an old nice priest, was preaching since years. The two priests knew each other well and Hannibal would confess to him whenever he needed to. After all, even priests had to confess themselves from time to time. He came after the church was closed, wearing casual clothes, he knew Lowry would be in, he knew the man had the habit to stay in his office for some time after closing the church. He rang at the back door, and was soon greeted by his friend.

“Hannibal! I’m glad to see you, it had been a long time,” Father Lowry said.

“I know, a little too long.”

The two chatted a little before Hannibal explained he was here because he wanted to confess, something that the older priest acknowledged. They went in the confessional and Hannibal started to speak:

“Forgive me Father, for I have sinned.

“I’m listening to you.”

“I have…I haven’t broken my vows but I feel needs which could bring me to it.”

“What kind of needs?”

“…Lust, a desire I never felt before.”

“I see. Go ahead.”

“I did felt lust before, but never so intensely. I…This time, it’s harder to push it away, because it’s not only carnal.”

The other priest nodded thoughtfully.

“Is this woman one of your parishioners?”

“It’s not a woman father, it’s another man.”

Another silence followed but Hannibal could perfectly tell what kind of reaction the priest had.

“It’s even worse. Lusting for a woman is sinful for a priest, but another man! You really must not give in into that sin. It would be utter damnation for you. The Lord doesn’t tolerate that. Does that man know?”

“Sometimes I have the feeling he wants to make me feel that way, but I don’t know if I’m projecting or not.”

“It’s possible, when the mind is clouded by that kind of urges, we tend not to think straight. So you didn’t talk to him about it?”

“No. It’s a profiler. He investigates the death of one of my parishioners. I didn’t know why but when I crossed his eyes…One glance from him was hell to fall in.”

The sentence sounded poetic, as Hannibal intended, because he didn’t want to reduce what he was feeling to simple lust. It was much more complex than that. The older priest didn’t seem to understand it though, and it irritated him.  

“Did you do something to get rid of that?”

“I prayed, I mortified my flesh…”

“Wait, mortified your flesh?”

“I whipped myself, Father.”

This left the priest speechless for some seconds.

“You really did that? It’s…My God, you realize that kind of things are completely barbaric?! It’s not right to desire another man, but you shouldn’t go to such length. No, you need to pray more and stop seeing that man. Hannibal, I never thought you could do such things!”

“The thing is Father, mortifying my flesh didn’t help at all.”

“Of course it didn’t, physical pain isn’t…”

“I mean that it only made me desire him more.”

The priest fell silent, Hannibal couldn’t see him but he was perfectly aware that he was disturbing the older man. He felt enjoyment in this, not only sorting his feelings out but scaring someone like this. He did like Father Lowry, but not enough to spare him.

“When I whipped myself, I really wanted to kill the desire but the more I was doing that, the more I imagined him in the room with me doing…Sinful things. And I started to feel pleasure while I whipped myself, I enjoyed it…And the second I whipped myself again, I admit I did it for pleasure, I enjoyed it. I imagined myself whipping him too, while he would be tied and unable to escape. I don’t know which version I enjoyed the most, the one in which he wanted me too, or the one in which I was forcing him.”

“My…Listen, this is all very sick, you don’t intend to hurt that person, do you?”

“I think about it.”

Father Lowry was starting to be really scared, he didn’t know who that man was, he didn’t know if he was aware of Father Lecter’s feelings or not but he feared for him. Sure, Hannibal had always been a really respectable priest, but sometimes sin and temptation could lead some people to horrible acts and the way he was talking...

“You must stay away from him. Hurting that person would be a terrible sin…I…I must ask that question but…Have you…hum…”

“You wonder if I want to rape him for real. I would prefer him to give himself to me, but if he refuses, then…I’ll have what I want. No matter what he does, I’ll have him at any cost.”

He could heard the priest’s breath shaking now.

“No, listen to me, this is madness, rape is a sin too, you must reason yourself and chase those thoughts away, ask God for help.”

“Oh but I think God has a precise idea for me…It was relieving to talk about this, I needed to sort those thoughts out, thank you Father, I want you to know that you have my gratitude.”

“What do you…”

“You have to understand, I don’t want anyone to know what I told you.”

“You perfectly know that confessions are confidential by a sacred law.”

“Some people break the law.”

At this instant, Father Lowry understood what it meant. He tried to rush out of the confessional but he was stopped by a sharp pain in his chest. Hannibal was standing before him, a knife in his hand and now in the older man’s chest. Lowry looked at Hannibal with stunned horrified eyes, the cannibal stabbed him again, several times and the priest ended up dead on the floor. Hannibal looked at him for a short moment, licked the blood off the knife and then went to the altar and looked at the Cross. He smiled, feeling somewhat appeased though the fire in him was still burning.

Father Lowry was right, his lust was sinful and a part of him hated that he was unable to control his wants but now that he killed Father Lowry, he understood he couldn’t stop himself. His desire for Will Graham made him kill someone he esteemed, but more importantly he murdered for someone else, something he didn’t do since avenging Mischa. Yet, he was feeling less lost, when he killed the priest, he realized he didn’t want to fight anymore against his wants. He could fix that sin of lust: after all God could forgive sinners, and he was sure that God would forgive him once he would have offered him a beautiful sacrificial lamb.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone! I had recently an idea and it could be interesting, it's a proposition I would like to make. To my dismay, there is absolutely no Hannigram wid with the song Hellfire, and I couldn't make a vid for the life of me. So here is what I propose: I will write a fic to whoever makes one and post it on Youtube. It would be a fic on Hannibal, and you can ask me almost any kind of fic you like, except: m-preg, infantilism, a victim falling for their rapist or crude sex scene. Right now it's all that comes into my mind, but I might have other objections, though I'm generally open-minded. You can ask me the pairing you want, even threesome, it can be a one-shot or multi-chapter. 
> 
> I don't know if anyone will be interested but it can be a nice exchange. In the meantime I hope you enjoyed this chapter, don't hesitate to comment.


	4. Mea Culpa

The Ripper’s case had always been a difficult one, no one would deny that. He just couldn’t be caught, his murders were gruesome and it didn’t take a genius to understand he was smart and taunting the FBI. However, when Will Graham started to work as a consultant and was asked to work on it, he had the feeling that eventually things would go wrong. It was strange, usually Will wouldn’t rely on intuition but on reason and proves, yet he just couldn’t shake out the feeling that one day, the Ripper’s case would take a very unusual and dangerous turn.

Right now, while examining their last crime scene, Will could feel something had changed, it was the Ripper, but he did something different: he killed a priest.

When he learned that the murder happened in a church, Will had cursed silently, he wasn’t really at ease in churches. He didn’t know why exactly, but he always found the atmosphere sour and heavy in any of those, he felt oppressed and uneasy. When he had to interrogate Father Lecter it cost him effort to go in the church, and he left as quickly as possible. In order to forget those feelings he focused back on work, which was the best thing he could do.

The Ripper’s victims weren’t good people, they all had done something wrong, like stealing or cheating, and the killer treated them like pigs, like scums who deserved to be exposed as such in death. He would always take trophies and he did the same with the priest, Father Lowry, only this time, Will could see…Respect.

The body was disposed on the altar, beneath the Cross; his livers had been taken, as well as his heart. His eyes had been closed, his hand had been put on his chest and a rosary had been put between his fingers.

“This one is special,” Will muttered. “The Ripper knew him.”

Jack and Beverly who were close looked at him, asking him silently to explain more.

“The other victims had been displayed like cattle, he was taking pride in killing them, it was his game, he had no remorse. But here…”

“The corpse is disposed in a respectful way,” Crawford continued to acknowledge what he was saying.

“He had been killed in the confessional,” Beverly added. “So he moved the corpse here on purpose.”

“It was a way to put him under God’s protection. But I don’t think it’s remorse, more like…Beverly, you said he was killed in the confessional?”

“Yes.”

Will went to the very spot where the priest was killed, Price and Zeller were working on it, before Will asked anything, Jimmy started to give him explanation.

“There was multiple stabs, it’s seems that he was coming out of the confessional when he got killed, then the body fell back in and…Given the amount of blood here, I don’t think he was taken away immediately, the killer probably let him here for some minutes before carrying him to the altar.”

“Wasn’t the church closed when he was killed?”

“Apparently yes,” Zeller confirmed. “People saw him close the church, from what I heard.”

“Then why was he in the confessional?”

“You’re the one who will have to answer that question I fear. We’re only here for evidence and it won’t be easy, there is way too many various DNA around, that’s the problem with public places.”

Will gave them a sympathetic smile before returning to the altar. Jack was also observing the scene and told Will that what just happened contradicted his theory according to which the killer was religious. Graham had come to that conclusion recently and Crawford wasn’t really fond of it, because there were no evidences to prove it. Yet Will was sure of it.

“Not necessarily, he killed the priest but he showed him more respect. He did display him, but like…Like a martyr, or a sacrifice, like a soul supposed to return to God. He wasn’t butchered.”

“He took organs.”

“Yeah, he has to claim his murder but it wasn’t like the others I think…It’s some kind of memory, not a trophy, he wants to keep a piece of Lowry with him. It’s not a kill out of spite, it’s something else.”

“Okay, focus and tell me what.”

Will closed his eyes and started to reconstruct the scene. _Father Lowry was in the confessional; there is no sign of a fight because he knows me, trust me. As he goes out, I stab him, it’s done quickly, I don’t exactly enjoy it, even if I don’t have hesitation or remorse, because I stab him several times. He falls back in, then…I let him here for a moment, I don’t take the corpse immediately. I think of what I’m going to do. Maybe I go pray before the altar, because at this moment, I owe that place, this is God’s house and God allowed me to do this. Then I take the corpse and put him here. I don’t want him to die anywhere, he was a man of God and he has to be given back to God…I close his eyes, put him in a more dignified position, because it’s not my usual prey._

He opened his eyes again. Why was the priest killed in the first place? He wasn’t feeling any spite toward him. The confessional…He was in the confessional…Then, it became clear to Will. He went to Crawford.

“He was confessing.”

“What?”

“This killer is religious, and according to Price and Zeller, the priest was coming out of the confessional when he was killed, yet the church was already closed.”

“So he let someone enter after the regular hour for a confession. You’re right, he knew him.”

“He wanted to confess a sin, only…He also wanted to kill the person who heard that.”

“You mean he confessed his murders but didn’t want to risk anything”

“That or maybe he wanted to somehow clear up his sin by killing the person who heard them. He killed that priest out of necessity but also out of pride. Putting corpse like this is…It’s not only a way to show respect, it’s also a way to be…Forgiven by God. As if he wanted to acknowledge his sins”

“But you said he was persuaded that God approve his crimes.”

“Yes, it’s another kind of sin he did. I don’t think he confessed his murders but something else. Then he killed the one who heard his confession.”

“What kind of sin?”

“That’s something I can’t tell.”

“So, you’re really sure the Ripper is religious? But he never claimed such motives.”

“Maybe…Maybe his motives aren’t religious, he thinks God is at his side, that he approves and give him the right to do that. I got that feeling on the crime scenes, this feeling of power on sinners. Now I’m surer than ever. Jack…”

“What?”

“I think arresting him will really be difficult.”

“It already is…”

“No I mean that we won’t get out of this easily, even for a difficult case, this one will be really tough.”

Jack didn’t say anything, because Will just confirmed what he also thought. Graham wasn’t the only one to have intuitions, Jack was also pretty sure that this was the kind of case which would leave a really big impact, not only because the murders were gruesome or because they risked to find horrid things. No, he felt something way more terrible would happen, even if he couldn’t say what exactly. He had the feeling everyone in his team was aware of that, just like him but no one would dare to voice it out, except for Graham. He didn’t want to talk about it, he didn’t want anyone to worry, plus it probably meant nothing, this case was hard, it was normal to worry over it.

Will got out of the church and didn’t notice he was being followed by Beverly. The woman went at his side and it was only when she stood beside him that he noticed her. He smiled softly to her, he knew she thought of him as a strange guy, but it wasn’t bothering her that much, she liked him and he liked her too, she was someone warm and nice.

“I heard what you said to Crawford about a confession. Who would have believed?”

“It’s hard to imagine the Ripper feeling bad about anything but I’m pretty sure it’s the case. Until now it’s the most personal thing he did.”

“Why didn’t you stay inside then? It’s probably like a gold mine for the profile.”

“Yes, but…I needed some fresh air.”

“Are you okay?”

“I don’t feel well in churches.”

“Neither do I, I must say. What’s your reason?”

“I don’t know really, but there is some kind of oppressing atmosphere in it, and…My father used to take religion very seriously, and in the end it just putt me off it.”

“I understand, it was quite the same with me, my parents weren’t very religious but we had to go to churches every Sunday and when I grew up as a teenager and started to believe in science instead, they still insisted for me to go with them. They eventually resigned themselves that I wouldn’t believe again. I guess we both associate churches with something our parents forced us to do.”

“Yeah…I wouldn’t have thought you were feeling the same. I thought I was the only one.”

“I hide it well,” she said quite proudly. “But I must say I’ll be glad when we are over. Do you want to take a coffee after that?”

Usually Will would have refused, he had never been good at socializing, but he actually wanted to accept, he wasn’t sure why, maybe because he liked Beverly or because he felt it could take his mind away from the case and chase that oppressing feeling he got after getting in a church.

“Okay. Is there a particular place you want to go to?”

“No, there is a Starbucks nearby, we can go there if you want.”

“Fine. Well…Let’s get in, Jack will kill us otherwise.”

“Probably.”

After work, they did take a coffee and as Will hoped, it helped him to get distracted from everything which was going on in his head. They spoke about their childhood, something Will was rarely doing because he often felt the impression that people were analyzing him, but Bev was alright. They also spoke about stupid little things, like the type of food they were fond of, or their hobbies. Once they parted, Will felt somehow satisfied, he had never been good to socialize, but for once he did and without much difficulties and having Beverly as a friend would help, he would feel less alone when he worked.

The next day, he had to give a class and it gave him the occasion to see another friend, Alana Bloom. He always liked to see her.

“Hi Will.”

“Hey, it’s had been a long time. What owe me that visit?”

“I was with a friend not long ago and we spoke about you, that’s why I thought about paying you a visit.”

“You spoke about me?”

“Yeah, it was Father Lecter, you interviewed him about a murder.”

“I remember. You know him? I didn’t know you were religious.”

“No, I’m not! Hannibal is interested in psychology; he often goes to classes and conferences, that’s how we meet. I often think that he could have been a psychiatrist if he wasn’t a priest.”

“I see. Maybe you should tell him to be careful…”

“I know, a priest was murdered by the Ripper, I read about it and a lot of people talk.”

“That kind of murders tends to shock people I guess. The Ripper is already notorious but now he murders a figure of authority and moral values.”

“Yes, but we are not obliged to talk about it. We see enough murders, no need to discuss it when we have free time.”

Will smiled, she was right indeed. They didn’t speak for long but seeing her had been nice, plus it made Will think that maybe he should talk to Father Lecter again, his parish was close to Lowry’s one, maybe they knew each other. Plus he could need the point of view of another priest to understand the religious motives of their killer and if in addition to his religious knowledge Lecter was good in psychology as Alana said it, he was the perfect candidate.

This was the reason why the next day, Hannibal had the visit of Will Graham again. He came to the church before it closed and was greeted politely by the priest.

“Agent Graham? It’s nice to see you.”

“Good evening, Father. I came to you because of our recent case, I don’t know if you heard about what happened to Father Lowry.”

“Yes…He was…He was an old friend.”

At this, Will felt a slight twinge of guilt, he was only doing his job but he knew he was also sharpening the pain of someone who knew the victim.

“I’m sorry for your loss. Do you know if anyone wanted to hurt him, did he have enemies?”

“Not that I know. Last time I saw him, he seemed to be fine.”

“When was that?”

“A week ago maybe, before Carl Marlowe was murdered. If you excuse me for a second, I have to close the church, we can talk in my office after that.”

“Okay.”

Will waited for him to tell people to evacuate the church and close it. He was still not feeling well in there, and now that it was almost deserted, it was even more oppressing. He entered the office and sat on a chair, his back facing the door, waiting for Hannibal to come. He heard the priest come back indeed and was expecting him to take place at his desk, but instead, all Will Graham felt was a big wave of pain at the back of his skull before falling into darkness.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you enjoyed this last chapter, don't hesitate to comment, it's always good to know what you think!


	5. Inferno

Night was falling already and Hannibal knew no one would come in the church, he locked it, he was the only one who possessed the keys. No one would come to bother him for whatever he had planned and it was for the best because what he planned to do in the house of God was definitely sinful and he wouldn’t allow anyone to dare to stop him.

When Will Graham entered his church again today, Lecter didn’t take a second time to think, to him, it was a sign of God, it was the right moment to act. He knew it was dangerous, Graham could have told someone he was coming here, but he didn’t care, he would confront the consequences later, but for now he would have what he wanted. Seeing the agent again fueled the fire in him once more and when they had found each other in the church, with no one to see them, he had let his desire take control of him. He had grabbed the heaviest thing he could find and knocked Graham out. Oh the agent didn’t suspect a single thing, a sacrificial lamb unaware of his fate…

Now, the agent was laying behind the altar, unconscious, his head slightly bleeding from the blow. It didn’t matter for now. Hannibal looked at his form and smirked. He knew it was sinful, he knew this could plunge him right in hell, but he enjoyed every single bit of this. Having this man just for him, defenseless, still a mystery and with so many possibilities ahead…All the things he could do…The priest straddled his prisoner, a shiver ran through his body as he did so. Will started to groan and Hannibal knew he had to restrain him right now, he had brought a rope and a bottle of oil, knowing this was necessary. He tied his hands behind his back before putting him back to his initial position to face him again. He caressed his chest through his shirt, slowly, feeling pleasurable shivers again as he did so. Then the agent stirred again and Hannibal stood up to tower over him as he would wake up.

At first, Will just blinked questioningly but Hannibal could see he understood his situation quickly as he tugged on his bonds. It was just so gratifying to see him like this, at his mercy, unable to escape.

“What…”

“I’m glad to see you’re back, Will.”

“Father, what’s happening…?”

“What ought to happen, Will.”

With that, he took off his priest’s robe and let it fall on the ground. He straddled Will again, and took out a knife which he put right under his throat. He didn’t need to tell his captive that he shouldn’t try anything foolish, it was useless.

“I want this since we meet, you know. Have you here, like this…”

“You’re going to kill me.”

“Is that what you think? You’re good to read people’s mind. Tell me, what do I want?”

“You…”

He pressed the knife further against his skin, stopping Will in his tracks and bringing a single drop of blood out.

“Look at me in the eyes while you talk.”

Though Hannibal knew he didn’t wish to do that, Will stared straight at him. It was delightful to see those eyes which wouldn’t turn away anymore, not before he allowed him too. The unreachable wild man with that scent of snowy forest was now under his grasp. The priest felt like a wolf and it was delicious.

“You’re the Ripper, aren’t you?”

“Yes.”

“And you’re going to kill me.”

“Oh no, unless you force me to. You actually have the choice in the matter.”

Hannibal threw himself over him and forcefully put his lips on Will’s for a kiss.

He could feel his captive tense under him but he couldn’t care less as he pressed himself entirely against him, pinning him against the floor and encircling him with his arms, one hand gripping his hair to held his head in place. He could feel him struggle and hear him whimper in protest, but it didn’t stop him, on contrary, it just added to the pleasure he was feeling, the thrill to dominate him, to punish the one who tormented him, to finally have these lips and mouth which made him fantasize and to touch that skin and feel the warm flesh…He felt pain on his tongue and retreated his head: Will just bit him. The profiler ignored that pain could enhance the priest’s pleasure, and this little defiance pleased Hannibal. To look at those intense blue eyes growing fierce and full of fire…An angel of revenge and anger couldn’t have looked more entrancing! Yet, he smacked Will hard, to show him he shouldn’t try to resist. This made the younger man yelp in pain. Hannibal didn’t waste time to regain his composure.

“What the hell?!”

Hannibal had a slight smirk at this, it was definitely genuine.

“You really didn’t suspect a thing didn’t you? For a time, I thought you were doing all this on purpose, but no! Isn’t it even more hellish? You didn’t even need to do a thing, your simple being is made to tempt and drive people to sin…”

“You’re sick.”

He got smacked again. The blow was followed by a caress on his cheek.

“You drove me to sin. Your beauty isn’t a simple gift of God, it’s the devil’s work to drive people wild…You succeeded with me, I have to give you that, you’re one of the rare people who made my desire stronger than my senses. Yet with me, that kind of victory has a price: I’m giving you the choice, either you give yourself to me willingly, either I kill you.”

Will looked at him with a horrified expression.

“Don’t do this…”

“Too late. You made me want you, now it’s time for consequences. Once again, it’s very simple, you’re mine or you die.”

He leaned at his ear and whispered:

“I killed Father Lowry after confessing you know. And I confessed my lust for you. I murdered him because he knew my weakness. Because of you.”

This seemed to horrify his captive and Lecter smirked once again before kissing and nipping his neck. Will tried to struggle even more, as Hannibal was pressed against him, the bound man could probably feel how much his captor enjoyed this all.

“Stop it, stop it right now! It’s sinful Father, isn’t it?! You’ll burn in hell for that!”

Lecter knew Will was trying to play on his fears, and if he wasn’t that determined, it could have worked but sadly for him, he was. He looked at him right in the eyes, their faces so close they could feel each other’s breaths on their lips.

“Oh I know that, I know. But I can’t go back, I need this…I don’t care if that means damnation. Now, choose, do you want to die or let me have you?”

Hannibal honestly wished Will would say yes, yet the horror on his prisoner’s face made it evident that he wouldn’t.

“I’d rather die.”

This rejecting made Hannibal fume inside. A part of him knew he would say no, it was a normal reaction, but he didn’t care, Will was not a normal man.

“Then you’ll die Will.”

For a moment, he considered stabbing him but he couldn’t, instead Hannibal kissed his lips once again, then trailed his mouth to his neck and his lips meet the drops of blood that he made earlier on his throat; Hannibal licked those away in rapture. His blood tasted good too…Without thinking, he bit at Will’s neck hard, tearing the skin to draw out blood, making him scream in pain. He could have bit at the wound he made but he didn’t, he wanted to draw out the blood with his teeth like an animal, he wanted to make him cry out in agony. He sucked out the blood and tasted it once again and this very taste, the very essence of that man made him burn even more and he felt he didn’t want to waste another second.

He did what was needed without thinking about it, taking off their remaining clothes, using the oil, hitting him to stop him from struggling, this was all details, and all he thought about was finally taking him. He used his knife to tear off his shirt away; something which made Will struggle even more.

“Stop it!”

A scream echoed in the church as well as a sigh.

Hannibal embraced him tightly and possessively, he bit at his neck, sucked the blood while trusting in, this was just perfect! He was feeling the object of his love and obsession in many ways and he loved it, he couldn’t care about anything else, he was ecstatic, the intense feeling of power and ownership, the sensation of Will’s warmth and skin against his and the pleasure of his flesh around him, that scent of woods, the sounds of pain he would make and the taste of blood…It that was just driving him half-crazy, all this melted into the fire which consummated him completely! He trusted hard, his nails dug into Will’s skin and drew out more blood, earning more yelps of pain from his captive.

“You’re mine now…You won’t ever leave me,” he murmured at his ear between gasps.

He bit Will’s ear while scratching between his shoulder’s blade. He continued in spite of Will’s evident pain, in fact, it just enticed him more, for a moment, when he looked at Will screaming, his face contorted in agony, he felt satisfied, now it was his turn to suffer, it was his turn to feel the flames and feel like the Devil was destroying him inside…

The fire only grew, fueled by everything he was feeling and eventually, the flames burned him completely. For a moment, he felt nothing but pure bliss and contentment.

He rested on his captive until he caught his breath, his head nestled in the crook of Will’s neck. Hannibal looked up at him and saw he was fighting against the tears. He caressed his cheek almost lovingly.

“Even in such a moment, your pride is still here. It’s almost sinful. But now with such a beauty, I guess you couldn’t be anything but sinful…”

Will’s face twitched, Lecter was pretty sure he wanted to say something but remained silent because he feared to burst into sobs if he tried to talk. Hannibal kissed him on the temple and put his head back in his neck. Graham’s breath was shaken, but the rest of his body was unmoving. Now that the priest was resting, he could think. He rarely did things that were unplanned and what he did now was totally unplanned. It came in his mind when Will entered the church, because he felt it was the right occasion but he had no idea of what he would do exactly. He just followed his desire, brought the unconscious Will near the altar and sinned under the eyes of God.  He didn’t want to hide, because it was useless, he wanted God to see him do this, to show that at least he wasn’t trying to hide that from him.

Now, what should he do? He could kill Will, after all he refused to give himself to him, he chose death. It would be wiser, he wouldn’t be tempted anymore, he would have this memory with him forever. Yet he remembered what he thought for a time: maybe the Lord wanted sent Will Graham to see whether or not Hannibal could transform him into a real believer. He couldn’t refuse to do as the Lord wanted after sinning like this, his only way to cleanse his sin was to do God’s will. Plus, even for himself did he really want to kill Graham? Even if it wasn’t God’s will to see him corrupted, Hannibal always wanted more than Will’s body, killing him after tasting him would just leave him with a void inside, he would always know he missed something big.  

Hannibal already kept some people prisoner in the past, he had arranged a room in his basement for that, he could perfectly lock Will down there. Yes…Have him here, in his home, under his command…He could have him as much as he wanted and in every way he wished.

He stood up and started to dress, looking all the while at Will’s face, wondering what he was thinking. The agent looked mortified and empty, except for that hint of a fight in his eyes, a fight against the tears. Oh Hannibal loved that, even if he called it sinful, he loved that even after such a moment, Will was trying his best to keep some dignity.

“I hope you’ll forgive me, I’ll have to knock you down again.”

Once dressed, he approached Will again and seized his head and he had the feeling that Will was relieved of that. It took only one blow on the ground to make him fall into darkness again. Hannibal kissed his unconscious captive lovingly. Graham would go through more pain in the future, because that was the way of God: first the punishment, then the salvation. Hannibal knew he would definitely enjoy giving Will both.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yeah, I'm really bad toward Will, and it's far from being over. I hope you enjoyed the chapter, I must say I'm not really one for crude words or very descriptive scenes, I'd rather leave some place for imagination. Don't hesitate to tell me what you think!


	6. Penitence

When Will woke up, the first thing he felt was pain and cold, his mind was dizzy and his body felt numb in spite of the vivid suffering. He blinked several time to clear his mind and remembered then: he had been...He gulped and felt tears coming in his eyes, but it stopped as he realized he had no idea where he was. He looked around; he was in a room without windows, with only a dim light. It was exactly like a cell, a sink and a toilet and the bed he was lying in. With horror, he noticed one of his feet was chained to the bed, with a long and quite heavy chain which fell on the floor like a snake. His heart beat faster, of course either the Ripper had to kill him or he had to lock him; now he was at the mercy of that man!

This very thought made his eyes go wet and he started to panic, he tried to get up but it was like his strength had left him and he couldn’t even stand. He felt vertigo and guessed he had been probably drugged. God, no! This couldn’t happen, it was a nightmare, it just couldn’t happen! He let out a whimper as a wave of pain crossed his body. Tears started to roll on his cheeks when he thought again of what happened...No, he couldn’t cry, he wouldn’t cry! But it was almost impossible, all he could think of was this, the pain and humiliation, and that sensation to be soiled in the worst way possible and to be nothing but a simple object. He couldn’t stop thinking of the noises the priest would make, of his lips on his skin and the way he forced him to look in his eyes…He couldn’t stay here, he had to escape now! But his damn body wouldn’t respond! He let himself fall on the bed and he thought of screaming for help but stopped himself. A voice in his mind reminded him he should be ashamed for panicking.

_What are you, some kind of poor damsel in distress? You were a cop, now you’re a FBI agent, behave like one!_

Yes, he had to calm down; he was used to danger after all. But what happened to him was…No, he had to push that away and stop thinking about it! If he wanted to avoid it in the future, he had to leave this place! Taking a deep breath to regain all his composure, Will quickly assessed the situation: he could see had been dressed back in a simple shirt and in boxers, he was in what looked like a cellar and he was chained to the end of the bed. He shivered, he had a cover but it wasn’t that warm, and this room was cold.

He was the prisoner of the Ripper, what time was it now? When he visited Lecter, it was the early evening, he had been knocked out twice, he didn’t know how long he remained unconscious each time, but he...His train of thought was interrupted by the image of Lecter kissing him. Stop! It had to stop, he had to focus! He didn’t know how long he remained unconscious each time, but it had probably not be that long, maybe it was still the same night, no one noticed his absence already. It wouldn’t last, he had to go to work the next morning, his colleagues would wonder where he was, Jack wouldn’t let it pass like that. For once, he was glad that Jack used to keep an eye on him; at least his boss wouldn’t overlook his absence.

He thought of his dogs, he hoped they would be fine in the meantime, if his absence was noticed, someone would probably think of them, maybe Alana or even Beverly or Jack.

As he thought his colleagues, he remembered how he told Jack that he had the feeling something would go wrong with the Ripper, something especially gruesome could happen. Well he was right, he was damn right! He almost cried again as images filled his mind again but he forced himself to push those away again and again. He would act like an agent, not like a victim! He was maybe unstable, often scared by his empathy but he was strong and determined; he wouldn’t let the Ripper destroy him like that. It wasn’t that terrible, right? Yes it was an awful experience but he would be fine, he wasn’t maimed or dead, as long as he was alive he could escape and then he would be fine…right?

_Of course I’ll be fine, I just have to stop thinking about it..._

But when he would escape, would he have to…To tell everyone what happened? He felt already soiled but when he imagined his colleagues learning what happened to him, the shame grew and it was almost unbearable to imagine their faces, what they would say, how they would either look at him with pity or disgust and how they would always look at him like a victim…It would be almost as if they were looking at him while it happened, and he couldn’t handle that! Maybe he could just tell Jack and have it kept secret but he was pretty sure everyone would eventually learn about this…

His thoughts were interrupted as he heard the door open and fear assaulted him, for a second he prayed it was Jack or someone of the FBI who would rescue him but no such thing happened. He saw Father Lecter opening the door and he turned his eyes away, still looking at him in the corner of his eyes however. This didn’t seem to disturb the priest anyway, he just went to his captive and sat on the bed at his side. Will wanted to get away badly but he could barely get his body to move.

“I hope you’ll forgive me, I didn’t want to take any risks, I imagine you already guessed I injected you with something.”

“What…did you gave me?”

“It doesn’t matter.”

The man just checked his condition, how the wound on his head was healing and if he was sick or not. Graham was repulsed by his touch but he didn’t have much of a choice but endure for now and though he wanted to speak, no words could come out of his mouth. Once he was over, the priest leaned down to kiss him but Will turned his head away, only allowing the priest’s lips to fall on his neck instead. A shiver of disgust went through him as he felt an arm circling his waist as well as those lips which were like leeches for him.

“Stop it…”

He meant to yell but he couldn’t manage to, his voice was too weak, he hated it. 

“I reached a point of no return with you. There is no stopping now.”

He bit on his skin and Will let out a yelp of pain and tensed under him, remembering too well the pain he felt when Hannibal pierced his skin with his teeth to drink his blood earlier. God, he was scared, he hated that but he was really scared. It seemed like Hannibal felt it and surprisingly, he stopped and his look was almost tender. It was only more disturbing and disgusting for Will.

“I’ll let you rest for now. But we will have to start your penitence soon.”

“My what?”

“Your penitence; you tempted me Will, there is something sinful in you, and you must go through punishment. It’s only once you’ll have received it that I’ll show you the true ways of God.”

“I did nothing wrong! I never tempted you!”

“Yes you did. And even if you didn’t do it on purpose, it’s still a fault. As I said, if your simple being is enough to tempt someone like me without doing anything, then there is something sinful in you. But you didn’t do that only, you got into my head, you read me, you tried to expose me. It’s okay to get pathetic little killers, but me? You have a wonderful gift given by God and you used it to get one of his most faithful believers.”

“You’re sick! Killing is not a way to worship God…”

“Of course it is. Killing low sinners is one, God loves bloodsheds. It’s them you should pursue. Don’t worry, in time I’ll teach you how to use your gift and how to worship the Lord. Then you’ll wish to stay with me.”

If there was something Graham knew for sure, it was that he would never wish such a thing.  Hannibal gave him a quick kiss on the lips and then leaned to his ear, after scratching it with his teeth he whispered:

“But I must say, I kind of enjoyed hearing you read my mind without even knowing it was me. When you’ll have learned, I’ll love to hear you again.”

“You said you would teach me…What do you really want?”

“You’ll understand later. For now, there are some things we need to get straight.”

He sat more straightly and grabbed Will be the hair, pulling harshly on it, making his captive hiss in pain.

“Look at me, I want to be sure you understand.”

With utter disgust, Graham forced himself to look at his eyes, those eyes he abhorred; he felt like he was being undressed and violated again, he could read his own shame in those eyes. Not bothered by this, Hannibal went on:

“I will keep you chained, and except when I’ll come to unchain you, I will never carry the key with me. This means that if you try to kill me and even if you succeeded, you would find yourself locked here with no one to hear you, and you would die slowly. Now I will unchain you from time to time, if you try to hurt me or escape when I do so, remember that I will take revenge on someone else outside. It could be dear Alana Bloom, your boss, any of your colleagues or some of your students. Got it?”

Will simply nodded and Hannibal kissed him again, the prisoner gagged and considered the idea of biting his tongue again but the warning had been enough to stop him. This man could kill someone for that, he kidnapped him and…Forced himself on him just because he found him attractive, he could perfectly kill someone if he dared to defy him, Will was sure of it. So he just waited for the kiss to be over, it seemed to be an eternity. Once their lips parted Hannibal left and instructed him to rest. Tomorrow will be a big day, he said.

The drugs were making him feel nauseous but it wasn’t the worse. The whole situation and the feeling to be soiled and dirty was the worse. He wanted to shower, badly, h almost wanted to tear off every inch of his skin to get rid of that feeling. He wiped his lips weakly; he could still feel the man’s saliva on his own and that was making him maybe even sicker than the drugs.

Time passed slowly and he just couldn’t find sleep. He started to think about about his past. He told Beverly he hated churches because his father took religion very seriously and it was true. His father wasn’t cruel, he didn’t grow up with a male Margaret White, but sometimes his childhood had been difficult mentally speaking. Not only they were moving too often, never allowing him to truly settle and have a place he could really call home and long-term friends, but his father was also very strict and believing God would punish them even for stupid things.

He remembered one day in particular when he was ten, he had went with another boy of his school named Jack to the river to play, he brought along Jumper, his dog. Some girls joined them in their game, among them was Kate, a girl he had a crush on. He remembered that at a point, they found each other beneath a tree and shyly, he told Kate he liked her. Upon hearing this, the girl shyly kissed him on the lips and the other kids made fun of them. Both of them blushed, it had been overall innocent but next day at school, when his father came to pick him up, Jack teased him about the kiss again, allowing his father to learn about it. He learned later that Kate’s mom joked about it, but his father took it seriously. He lectured Will about it, saying it was sinning to go to girls and that he was starting to grow up and would soon have to control his urges. Will was puzzled about that and scared. The way his father put it, it was scary to grow up.

Only three days after the kiss, his dog died. He was old and it was probably the reason why he passed away, but his father saw things otherwise. He brought Will to the church that day while the boy was still crying, he made him sit on a bench and what he said was probably what started his aversion of churches.

_“Will, Jumper died for a reason, God wanted it, and you know why?”_

_“Because he was old?”_

_“No. The Lord claimed him back because of the fault you committed the other day.”_

_“Because I kissed a girl? But I didn’t want to do something wrong…”_

_His father put an arm around his shoulders and hugged him._

_“I know you weren’t thinking wrong, but it’s still a fault. Will, Jumper saw you grow up, he was with you all your childhood, but when you kissed that girl, you killed your childhood and that’s why the Lord killed Jumper. You’re starting to become a man now.”_

_This made Will shiver and he couldn’t stay a thing. His dad raised his chin to look at him in the eyes._

_“I can see it in your eyes. You’re not the same little boy anymore. Pray, ask the Lord for forgiveness and then you’ll pray for help and protection.”_

_Will didn’t feel strong enough to pray, he felt empty, sad and guilty. Was his father right? Did he kill Jumper and his childhood? Did he really change into something he couldn’t even really understand yet? He knew his father was sometimes exaggerating, some people told that to him already, but what if this time he was right?_

_Seeing he had no reaction, his father urged him to pray and Will did, he prayed emptily but he wanted to go out of there, he wanted to go to his room and hide there to cry. Yet he couldn’t leave, his father wouldn’t let him. Then he started to feel bad in here, he started to feel prisoner, judged, oppressed, guilty and sad._

During the course of his teenage hood, Will questioned the existence of God. With time, he understood he wasn’t responsible of the death of Jumper, and he got pretty sure God didn’t really exist. His father’s reaction after Kate made him create a barrier in his mind during the first years of his teenage hood, he hardly dared to talk to people of his age, girls especially. It took him time but eventually, he got a girlfriend, even if it didn’t last long, it helped him broke the barrier. Yet he knew this all contributed to his asocial behavior, even if he didn’t see sex as a sin, he had been somehow forced to isolate himself from others as he grew up.

He remembered the day he announced to his father he didn’t believe in God anymore, he was eighteen and was about to leave to have his own life. His dad had yelled, even cried and repeated he would go to Hell, but eventually, he resigned himself to it. He told Will he would pray for his son to come back to his senses, but Will promised his dad he would be fine and would have a decent life nonetheless.

His father hadn’t been aware of this, but he somehow put his son in a prison even if he thought he was doing the best for him. With time, Will eventually found a way through it. He felt even more furious to be in another prison, made by religion again. Only this time, it was way worse, his father was a bigot but he wasn’t cruel and he never made him hate himself so much. This man here was a fanatic, a true monster. At least, his father loved him and while he did some errors, he genuinely did what he thought was the best for him. This man however just took him like you take a prized object for his pleasure and did…horrible things to him. More would come he knew that, but he escaped many terrible things in his life, and no matter what, he would escape this prison. Anger invaded him while he was staring at the darkness, filling him with a new dangerous strength. No, he wouldn’t let the Ripper win, he would destroy him or he would die trying.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh gosh, that one had been even harder to write somehow. Don't hesitate to review and tell me what you think, next chapter will be from Hannibal's point of view, so I'll warn you it will be creepy!


	7. Martyr

The next morning after Will’s arrival, Hannibal gave him some food and briefly unchained him to allow him to dress properly. Though he wanted to punish Will, he wouldn’t have allowed himself to be rude to him and deny him proper clothes, that kind of humiliation was just low. Will eagerly accepted those, however he didn’t touch the food, yet Hannibal wasn’t surprised, that kind of behavior was normal for rape victims.

A part of him cursed himself for not waiting, he should have tried to seduce Will, bring him into his world slowly, but when he had seen him in the church…His desire took over. Yet when he thought about it, it was better that way, seeing him suffering under him, forced into submission had been so powerful and thrilling and now, he would have a new challenge: having to make Will come at his side and seduce him in spite of his current repulsion. Graham deserved punishment anyway, and Hannibal needed to kill him a little inside to make him rebirth into something new. Forcing himself on him was an efficient way. He couldn’t resist the lust now, he knew it. So if he couldn’t make Will become his willingly, then he would have to kill him. He would consume his flesh one way or another.  

Now it was the evening, and once he was back from work, Hannibal was preparing another of his fantasies: he had put some light drugs in Will’s food and though he didn’t accepted it this morning, hunger won him over and when Hannibal gave him dinner he eat it. It wasn’t long to take effect and soon his prisoner was barely conscious. All he had to do now was to tie him as he wished…He fixed the roped and seized his captive. It was really delightful to have him like this, pliant, at his mercy. He took an instant to kiss his lips and face while he wouldn’t resist. He mused over the fact it had been a really long time since he didn’t kiss anyone. Until he kissed Will, he hadn’t realized that he actually missed that kind of contact. Then he eagerly took off his shirt, leaving him only in the black pants he gave him.  Perfect. He wasn’t really long, Will wasn’t the first person he would tie like that but it would definitely be the most enjoyable time.

He waited for Will to wake up, his hands behind his back, hiding the item he would use with him. He admired his work meanwhile, he just loved it, it was like he imagined. Will was tied in the center of the room by two ropes hanging from the ceiling, his arms apart, his feet touching the ground but not supporting him for now. With grunts, his captive woke up and looked puzzled then scared when he realized what was happening to him. Then he noticed Hannibal standing and his look turned angry but he could still see a hint of fear in his eyes.

“What are you doing?”

“I told you, you need to get through a punishment.”

“What you did to me isn’t enough already?”

“With your empathy, you should know the answer.”

“I guess the Ripper can’t have enough…”

Father Lecter smirked at this answer. Indeed, he wasn’t one to give up on what he wanted.

“What is behind your back?”

Without giving him any answer, he started to walk around him, circling him like some kind of vulture, he savored his reaction when he was behind him, out of his sight. Will’s body tensed, even more cautious when he couldn’t see his next move. He didn’t let him see what he was hiding, no, his prisoner would have to discover.

“Tell me, what do you enjoy the most: the sensation of power or watching me like this?” Asked Will.

“Both, it’s always a powerful sensation to subdue someone,” Hannibal answered still walking around him. He found himself behind his back again and put his lips just behind Graham’s ear, making both of them shiver in the process: “Haven’t you ever felt it?”

“I never did anything like this to someone,” Will replied while trying to move his head away.

“No, but you tracked down people…like a predator,” Hannibal backed away slightly before going on. “You arrested some dangerous killers. I also heard you killed someone…Remind me his name?”

“Does that matter?”

“It might. Or do you prefer to leave him nameless, like a random prey?”

“He wasn’t…”

But Will stopped himself here, Hannibal wondered why. He walked around him again, to see his face and noticed Will seemed determined. He had to admit it was quite impressive. When he was behind Will’s back once again, Hannibal finally did what he fantasized about: he hit his captive’s back hard with the whip. This made his prisoner yell out in pain and Hannibal watched as his face contorted before looking at him in horror.

“Have you heard about mortification of flesh?”

Will closed his eyes and his mouth twitched at this. Hannibal went behind him again and hit his back again, making him yelp but not as hard as the first time. Some pearls of blood were springing out before dripping slowly on the skin in cascades. The sight was breathtaking; Hannibal observed it to have it carved in his memory. He was almost surprised when he heard Will speaking.

“I guess you didn’t get that whip only for me, _Father._ Do you often feel the need to make yourself suffer like that?”

“Only when I need to fight off something particularly strong I shouldn’t yield to. I never used this one with someone…”

Another blow followed, and Will stopped himself from screaming, merely grunting instead. Oh this was only making Hannibal long for his screams even more, it made him think of the time in the church, when Will wasn’t holding back…

“But I must say, it’s a really pleasant experience.”

“Also very hypocritical,” Will pointed out.

This made Hannibal stop for a mere moment. His prisoner was panting slightly, trying to stay strong.

“You pretend you’re doing this out of religious intent, but it’s patently untrue…You’re simply doing that because it makes you kink, nothing more.”

At this, Hannibal frowned; it wasn’t exactly true, he really wish to satisfy God, inflicting pain to Will was a way to show his devotion. Now, it was also true that God wasn’t his only motive…He whipped his back again harshly, earning this time a yelp of pain, and some more drops streamed on his back. Two other blows followed, harsh to punish Will for questioning his faith, then he went to face his prisoner again and grabbed his jaw tenderly.

“You’re making it this all way too simple, my dear. I sure enjoy it, I won’t deny that, but this isn’t my only reason. You’ll understand one day.”

“Understand that I should enjoy pain?”

“Pain can reveal more beauty than people think. Now, you’ll have to find which way you want to enjoy it.”

Another blow followed those words, and another. Hannibal devoured with his eyes the sight of Will, the small rivers of blood dripping over his naked back, his efforts not to show his pain, a mixture of strength and weakness, he had the dignity of a martyr while he was the object of his temptation. Lecter mused again over the fact that Graham was demonic and holy at the same time. No wonder he developed this obsession. He felt arousal, in his fantasies he tended to imagine whipping his chest, but he discovered he preferred to whip his back, he wanted his torso to remain as it was. His back however would be beautiful, lacerated, marked by the traces of pain and obsession…

Will’s knees weakened and he let the ropes support his weight more and more. His back was bloodied and Hannibal dropped the whip. Seizing his prisoner’s sides gently, he held him in place while he ran his tongue over the blood-soaked skin. He felt Graham flinch and try to pull away but he didn’t let him, he wanted to taste him again, to swallow that thick crimson liquid which was his very essence. His arousal only grow with the coppery taste in his mouth, it was better than wine. With his lips still stained, Hannibal faced Will again and kissed him, making him taste his own blood and this made the priest’s lust rage, having Will’s blood and lips at the same time…

When he broke the kiss, Will let out a whimper and he dropped his head, exhausted. Hannibal lifted it to see those beautiful blue eyes barely open and the lust left him for a moment, replaced by worry. He looked at Will’s back again and was reassured to see the injuries weren’t really bad, not worse than what he inflicted to himself in the past. It was probably a combination of that and the drugs and the shock that weakened Will like this. Yet it was enough, this sight had been delicious, licking his blood had been thrilling, he didn’t need to whip him anymore, he had to keep some control of himself otherwise he would cause him serious injuries. He untied him and for a moment, Will fell in his arms but his prisoner pushed him away soon to try to stand on his own. Their eyes crossed for a moment, fire burned in those icy eyes of Will…

This almost made Hannibal lose control again. For a moment he wished nothing but rush at him, throw him on the floor and ravish him until Will would vanish…Yet when he saw the other man leaning against the wall for balance, he decided against it. No, aside from the lust, the anger, the need to punish, Hannibal was also feeling some kind of tenderness for Will, a tenderness that wouldn’t stop him from making him suffer but would make him put limits in cruelty. At least as long as Will behaved. He seized Will, in spite of the struggle his prisoner tried to oppose at first and led him to the bed.

“Come on, I’ll tend you wounds. You’ll be allowed to take a shower after that.”

“That’s too nice of you.”

Will laid on his stomach, his back exposed and Hannibal chained looked at it one last time before chaining his feet to the bed again and getting what was necessary to heal him. Will almost didn’t speak at first while he tended his wounds, probably too tired. Hannibal took some strange pleasure to do it, maybe because he was feeling in control, maybe because he liked to admire his work, maybe because he enjoyed showing Will some gentleness after this harsh punishment.

“What was your feeling while I did this?”

“Why do you care?”

“Because I’m interested, it’s the point in bringing you here. Once again, you’re making this all too simple. I believe…”

He stopped mid-sentence and had a slight smile at the idea which just hit him. It could be interesting.

“What?”

“I was just thinking. There is something that surprise me: you didn’t ask me to let you go. It would be a normal reaction.”

“Would that be efficient?”

Of course they both knew the answer, Hannibal simply made a small huff of amusement, clearly meaning it wouldn’t. 

“I perfectly know you don’t want to let me go,” Will continued. “You told me you reached a point of no return. And even if you didn’t tell me, I would have known. You kidnapped me and let me see your face, which means you have no intention to release me. There is something I want to know…”

“What?”

“Just like the whip, I guess this room already existed before you meet me…How many people?”

“Not much actually. And none of them stayed for really long.”

“Did you felt for them what you feel for me?”

“What do you think I feel for you?”

“…Obsession.”

Hannibal was already done with his wounds now. He looked at his prisoner, lying on that bed, after enduring the mortification, still so handsome and still trying to fight one way or another...He leaned down and kissed the back of his neck, Graham tried to get away from his touch but Hannibal grabbed his shoulder firmly and started to kiss the skin, starting from the neck to the jawline. Yes, this man was his obsession; he had wanted him since the beginning, he had been obsessed by his lust and fascination, by his need to possess him, by the erotic fantasies in which Graham almost haunted him and by the possibility of a real emotional and intellectual relationship the two could share because of Will’s fascination for killers. His kisses became more passionate and he caressed Will’s sides, avoiding the wounds as much as he could.

“Don’t,” said Will firmly but with a touch of fear. “The wounds will reopen.”

But Hannibal didn’t listen at all and started to undo his pants. Will tried to struggle but Hannibal slapped his wounded back hard, making him yell.

“Don’t try to resist. You’re chained, you can’t escape, you’ll just make me hurt you.”

Will let out a bitter laugh and Hannibal continued with what he was doing. His prisoner tried to struggle again in spite of his warning, which obliged Hannibal to hit him and inject him a small dose of drugs again, not enough to send him into sleep, but enough to weaken him. He wanted Will to feel it all, to feel the way he would possess him again. It was as good as the first time in the church; it wasn’t all new, but it was here, in his home, with a chain and after the whipping. He kissed him, touched him, nipped at his skin, and licked some blood which remained before finally taking him again. Will attempted to bury his head in the pillow but Hannibal seized his hair and turned his head to the size, so he could at least see half of his face while possessing him.

“Don’t dare to turn away again.”

He leaned mainly on his arms, not lying on his back, aware of how much it could hurt him, yet it was sometimes hard to remember this while the sensation were taking over. It was like a raging fire again, burning him completely, deliciously torturing him from the inside, and every little flinch, every pained sounds and the look of suffering on his captive’s face were only a part of those hellish flames that consumed him entirely. He intensified his pace, burying his nails in Will’s shoulders, not enough to draw out blood but to feel the flesh.

Once he was done, he let Will rest and eventually unchained him to bring him into the bathroom and let him shower. His captive had eyes of stone after what happened, it made no doubt Will was angry, behind the stony look. He remembered that line from poem by William Blake which fitted Will perfectly: A robin redbreast in a cage puts all heaven in a rage…No…A robin redbreast in a cage puts all _hell_ in a rage…That was better to define what he could see in Will’s eyes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone! I had recently an idea and it could be interesting, it's a proposition I would like to make. To my dismay, there is absolutely no Hannigram wid with the song Hellfire, and I couldn't make a vid for the life of me. So here is what I propose: I will write a fic to whoever makes one and post it on Youtube. It would be a fic on Hannibal, and you can ask me almost any kind of fic you like, except: m-preg, infantilism, a victim falling for their rapist or crude sex scene. Right now it's all that comes into my mind, but I might have other objections, though I'm generally open-minded. You can ask me the pairing you want, even threesome, it can be a one-shot or multi-chapter. 
> 
> I don't know if anyone will be interested but it can be a nice exchange. In the meantime I hope you enjoyed this chapter, don't hesitate to comment.


	8. Prayer

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi Everyone! Here is the new chapter and I also have the pleasure to show you this drawing made by IvanaeSilvia, which I really liked, about Will while he gets whipped by Hannibal. Don't hesitate to comment!

 

_ _

_Now I lay me down to sleep,_

_Pray the Lord my soul to keep_

_If I die before I wake_

_Pray the Lord My soul to take_

When he was still living with him, Will’s father would make him pray like this every evening, before going to bed. When he was a child, he wasn’t minding, it was a routine, and he somehow liked to share this little moment with his father, and when he still believed in God, it would reassure him. One could say it was a stable thing for him and stability would comfort him as he could settle anywhere. When he was a teenager and started to doubt God’s existence, it was an obligation he felt he couldn’t avoid because he wouldn’t dare to voice his doubts to his dad. Robert Graham might have felt this evolution but he never showed it. Now that he was an adult, Will surprised himself to whisper it as he was lying in bed.

Truth to be told, he would have hated it if his father learned what was happening to him, though Robert would never learn anything, he was dead now. However, he longed for the comfort his dad could show when he was feeling distressed. It could be strange to feel the need to tell a prayer when he was the prisoner of a murdering priest and considering that he wasn’t fond of religion, but this prayer in particular reminded him of his dad, not of Hannibal. Will had sworn he would show himself strong, and he would, but for now as he was on his belly, his back wounded and his body soiled again, some comfort was really needed. The shower he took earlier didn’t help much, he scrubbed his skin hard, almost scratching himself at times, but he still felt dirty.

He had to be strong however, he knew it. Aside of the short moments when he was wishing for comfort, anger was mostly driving him insane. When he had been whipped…Oh God, he had felt like he could explode because of all the rage! He did try to remain level-headed, cold and controlled, and he was really glad he didn’t break, that he didn’t cry, even when…When Hannibal took him again, he didn’t cry. It had been hard but he didn’t and a bitter kind of victory was giving him some strength. After Hannibal left, he had done nothing but stare at the atmosphere and think…He had taken a resolution then: he would destroy the Ripper, even if it meant he had to kill a part of himself.

When he had first wake up here, he only thought of escaping and giving the Ripper to the police, but as time passed and even before the whipping, he had started to consider the possibility of doing more: crushing the Ripper mentally. Now, after what he did to him, raping him after whipping him, he humiliated him again and in a way that was maybe even worse than the first time. That’s he wouldn’t just runaway, no. He would make the Ripper regret everything he did, he would make him regret what happened deeply. For that however, he needed  to remain level-headed, to work on his profile and get into his mind.

The Ripper was one of the most complex killers he ever worked on, but he could still read his mind, at least a part of it: Hannibal was lonely, he couldn’t admit it but he was, there were also years of sexual needs and frustration he ignored, the priest probably pretended not to be interested by something so trivial before, but inside, his sexual needs were strong. Everything Hannibal kept locked was ready to spring out, and it did when they met. Now, why him? Graham had no desire to see himself through the eyes of such a man, yet he knew he had to. Lecter said he wanted this since they met; he had no reason to doubt that.

When they met the lust started, but it was probably not only his physical aspect, though it did play in the balance, it wasn’t only that. Hannibal wasn’t immune to sexual desire but his way to lust wasn’t only physical, he needed an intellectual dimension, an interest which would be beyond physical attraction. Yet the priest didn’t know him when they met, every encounters they had were brief, so how did he get his attention? Did Jack introduce him as a profiler? Then he remembered: Alana. She paid him a visit and said they spoke about him with Hannibal. If she told him he had a very sharp empathy, maybe it was what interested him…Yes, he never told Hannibal about his empathy and yet the man knew about it, he accused him of using it the wrong way. He had to know what else she told him, he had to know what exactly started this obsession, whatever it was it would be Hannibal’s weakness.

Closing his eyes, he focused: _Years and years of meticulous murders, motivated by my faith in God, eating and killing sinners to feel not only close to the Lord but also to feel more powerful…Until now I could lock all my sexual wants without any problems, but then…Will Graham comes in and awake feeling that suddenly make me feel less in control…Worse, I’m obsessed, me, a powerful man above usual sinners I’m suddenly dragged so low as to lust for another man…I have to make him mine one way or another…But first I need to know more about him…He knows Alana…But how do I know that? Did she told me?_

This was indeed strange…It would be way too hazardous of Alana came and suddenly told the priest about him…No, Hannibal discovered because… _Because he followed me._ The thought made Will shiver, yes, the Ripper followed him. Of course…He had wished to know more and he followed him and that’s how somehow he discovered that they had a friend in common and he used Alana one way or another. He probably followed each one of his victims…Damn, he really had to know exactly what started this obsession precisely.

Okay, next question, what exactly did he intended to do? He didn’t intend to keep him as a mere sex object, no. His desire was also intellectual and he told Will he wanted him to understand how to worship God, he spoke about redemption, he spoke about showing him God’s true ways…He wanted Will to become like him, because he wanted him and because he was lonely. No, the Ripper had no intention to objectify him at all and that would play in his favor, even the rape hadn’t been done in such intents, while most rapists would dehumanize their victims, turn them into mere objects, it wasn’t Lecter’s goal. No…It was something else, it was carnal desire, but also punishment for making him lust and tormenting him; it was a way to show his ownership and control, as well as a mean to break him…Yes…Hannibal wanted him to be broken, that was also why he whipped and raped him, he wanted to kill him a little so he would be able to rebuild him again in a new way, as a killer too. It promised more torture to come…This question was actually pretty easy.

Now another question was: how much did Lecter want to break him? If he was interested by his mind, by his personality, he wouldn’t want him to be completely broken; he would want him to keep some of his personality…Or maybe he just really wanted to mold him into something else…No, his personality mattered, he wanted Will as a companion, he would want some of himself to remain…But to which extent? He would try to kill his moral believes, he would try to cut the ties with his old life…He would probably ask him to kill someone, Will could already imagine Hannibal bringing a victim here, telling him he had to murder that person in order to show his loyalty. God, what if it was Alana? This thought scared him, would Hannibal be ready to have her die, even if they were friends? Yes, he killed Father Lowry even if he liked him. Will prayed it would never happen. After all, Hannibal was using Alana as some kind of threat, he threatened to kill her if Will wasn’t obedient, he had all interest to keep her alive. Yet even if Hannibal didn’t bring Alana, he wouldn’t wish to murder anyone.

He knew the best way to escape; it was also the best way to destroy Lecter as he wished: acting as if he was giving him what he wanted. But for that, he had to know exactly what he wanted and take time; he had to continue to show himself resistant for some time, otherwise Lecter would see the bluff.

He felt tired, he knew he had his chance to win, to get out of here and make him pay and that was comforting him a little, but he also knew it would be hard and he would have to endure more horrors. Yet he would be strong, he promised he would be strong. He thought of his dogs, of Alana, and of Beverly who was maybe his only colleague who genuinely really liked him, unlike Jack who just wanted to use him and Price and Zeller who looked at him like he was some freak. He murmured the prayer again, and eventually fell asleep but didn’t get much rest, he was only having nightmares.

The next day, he found some food and two books next to his bed and guessed Lecter probably put those here while he was sleeping: a bible next as well as a book titled _The Golden Legend_ by Jacobus de Voragine. Will knew it, imaginary biographies of saints were written in it, but his father would read it to him when he was a kid. For the first time since very long, Will felt thankful toward his father for the religious education he gave him, because at least he wasn’t completely clueless about religion and it would definitely be useful here. He took _The Golden Legend_ and smiled while reading some of it because he realized it was the same edition as the one his father possessed. Turning the pages brought him back to his childhood and it almost made him laugh: Lecter wanted to play with his mind, to mess it, and that’s why he gave him those, but by doing so he actually unwittingly gave him a way to remember who he was, to reconnect with his past. He wouldn’t tell him that of course.

He read some of it and eventually ate what had been given to him. He didn’t have much appetite, what Hannibal did to him was still making him feel incredibly dirty and wrong, but knowing he had a way to defeat his captor and the book which reminded him of his father helped him to stay determined. He had to eat, neglecting his health wouldn’t be a good idea. Strangely making Hannibal’s profile was the best way to push away the thoughts of what he did to him, maybe because he was seeing things from a professional point of view...A predator’s point of view. He hated the idea that Hannibal could be right, but when he was tracking criminals, he was indeed like a predator…No! A hunter, it was better, Hannibal was the predator, he was the hunter, and for now the predator cornered him, seemed to have the upper hand, but Graham still had some juice.

The day passed, when he heard the door open on Hannibal, he had _The Golden Legend_ in hands and he could see Hannibal was pleased to see him read, if only he knew!

“I see you appreciate what I gave you.”

“I have no other choice, don’t I?”

“You could throw those away.”

“And kill myself with boredom? No. I’d rather read, even if it’s something you chose.”

“Did you have a religious education, Will?”

“My father wasn’t home a lot, and he wasn’t very religious, but I have some basis. And recently I read about religion, because of…Well, because of you.”

Hannibal sat at his side and looked at him with interest, Will avoided his gaze, still not fond of eyes’ contact and disgusted by his in particular. He couldn’t help but tense but didn’t recoil, the priest probably noticed but didn’t pay attention, instead he just asked a question:

“When did you guess I had religious motives?”

Will turned to him, and this time he watched his expressions as he spoke.

“It was before Father Lowry if it’s what you are wondering.”

 “I know, the second time we meet you told me that you thought it was one of my parishioners, and it was before I killed him.”

“If I knew back then…I can’t really say ‘when’ but it wasn’t immediate. You know about my empathy, I could feel there was more than a need for dominance in your crimes, but a…creativity which was aimed to pay homage to something. It creeped in me that you could be paying homage to God, you were only killing people who had done something wrong, I knew you weren’t targeting anyone. You were choosing according to sins.”

The only answer he got at that was a kiss on the lips, he recoiled this time but thankfully Hannibal didn’t insist.

“Tell me something in return,” Will tried, not sure he would obtain anything.

“What?”

“What started this all? Why me?”

Though he intended to ask this question to know Hannibal better and spot is weaknesses, Will realized it came out as more desperate than he wished.

“I already told you.”

“No, you didn’t. You told me you felt attraction but none of the people who felt attracted to me ever went as far as you did! You told me there was something sinful in me but you didn’t even tell me what.”

Silence settled between them, Hannibal seemed to hesitate and Will realized that maybe he didn’t even know himself what started this all. That would be also a reason to be so furious, to ignore what Will was doing to him exactly. He wasn’t really expecting an answer anymore but Hannibal gave him one.

“Something in you, in your eyes, showed me that you had something special. You avoid eyes contact but you have an expressive stare, and it gripped me. It started like this, then you showed me a sample of your mind. I want everything of you, your body, your mind, your soul…”

With that he kissed him and started to touch him, Will tried to push him away and when the priest’s hands started to touch his back, he let out a yelp of pain. Surprisingly, this made Hannibal stop and his lustful expression changed into a more serious one.

“I forgot to check on your wounds. Lie down on your belly.”

Will turned his back to him but refused to lie down, he continued to sit on the bed, yet when Hannibal pulled up his shirt he couldn’t help but feel disgust again, even if his touch was nothing but necessary.

“Looks like its healing well, but I’ll clean those again, just to be sure.”

He left and came back with what he needed and also with some food for dinner. Will remained silent all the time, knowing he had to say something, continue their conversation but he had the impression that his words somehow aroused Lecter, maybe because he asked him to describe his feeling and it reminded the priest how much he desired him. And he certainly didn’t want to arouse him. _Don’t be stupid, he lust for you anyway, talking is still the best way to make him think of something else._

“You brought me those books, could you bring me other in the future?”

“I’ll do many things for you in the future and you’ll choose any books you want, if you learn to trust in me. But for now, you still have to go through penitence. I might bring you other books if you are cooperative.”

“And I guess it includes being cooperative in anything you want.”

He couldn’t see Hannibal but he was sure the damn priest was smirking.

“Of course.”

This made Will reflect on something he didn’t want to think about. He knew he would have to give Hannibal the illusion he was falling in madness to gain his trust, but to really achieve that, would he also have to…To give himself willingly? This idea revolted him, he couldn’t do that. No. Anyway, for now, he couldn’t be too cooperative as Lecter put it, it would be suspect, but eventually he would have to be more responsive to…NO! He would find a way to avoid that, he just had to think and study his captor.

When Hannibal was done, he let Will eat and left him again. For a moment, Will considered the possibility that the food could be drugged, but he couldn’t starve himself so he tried it and it seemed that his captor didn’t put anything in it. No. However, when Hannibal was back, he saw him coming back with ropes, a syringe and a blindfold. He stood up, not even caring about the pain in his back. What the hell did that mean?

“What is that?”

“Remember, you have to do as I say. The more you resist, the more painful it will be.”

“What do you intend to do?”

“It’s the next step, of course.”

 


	9. De Profundis

 

When Lecter approached with the ropes, syringe and blindfold, the profiler backed away, not willing to let him get close.

“You can’t escape this, Will, you know it. As I told you, I don’t have the key to those chains, so even if you could beat me, you wouldn’t get free.”

“Don’t even try this!”

“Let’s see things like this: either you are cooperative, either I get out and leave you alone and while you are here, you can still try to guess whether I’ll bring Alana’s head or Jack’s head to you.”

This made Will’s gut tighten in terror and he felt fear invade him like a wave. No, he couldn’t let that happen, he couldn’t let any of them die, he wasn’t that fond of Jack but he had no desire to see him dead, as for Alana, she was his friend! His jaw tightened, he already took his resolution, he knew it, but he couldn’t voice it, he hated Lecter maybe even more than before, and he didn’t think it could be possible!

“So, what will you do?”

“…Fine.”

“Good, lay on the bed now.”

Will did as he was told, slowly, sure to know what would happen. He lay on his back, even though it was painful he felt a little less vulnerable like this. Hannibal tied his wrists apart to the bedposts and Will felt sick, for a moment he wondered if he would puke or not. Then Hannibal blindfolded him and it didn’t help either, he was incredibly tense, he was even more vulnerable than usual, Hannibal could really do anything he wanted right now…Whatever the priest planned he wouldn’t see it coming, he wouldn’t be able to recoil or even push him away…His legs were still free, but it was bringing nothing to him. The priest wasn’t moving, he could hear him close, feel his presence near him…What was he waiting for?

“So this is your new kink? Go ahead, get what you want,” he tried to sound fearless but his voice was trembling slightly.

“Oh, you think this is sexual?”

This startled Will and once again he knew the priest was smirking even if he couldn’t see him. What the hell? When he saw him come back with all this and the syringe he thought Lecter would weaken him to tie him and rape him again. But no…What was happening?

“What then?”

“I’m not touching you any further tonight. I can wait a little; I need to control my desire too. What I planned tonight for you is different.”

Will jumped in surprise when he felt Lecter’s hand gripping his arm, then he felt that the priest was injecting him with whatever was in the syringe.

“What are you giving me?”

“Don’t bother about that. While you read the _Golden Legend_ , did you read about Saint Anthony?”

While Lecter was speaking, Will had the impression that his voice was more distant, was the doctor leaving the room? Even his body felt strange, as if it was number.

“I did…What happening?”

“You remember how he was persecuted by demons in the desert? Think of it Will, imagine what this man felt when demons would come, with no warning whatsoever and try to hurt him. Do you remember what they did?”

He couldn’t help but imagine demons with twisted smirking faces…Then Will perfectly understood what was happening. Oh what a bastard! The priest probably gave him some kind of hallucinogens, as for the ropes and the blindfold it was sensorial deprivation. He knew that form of torture, it could drive someone mad: depriving the brain from receiving stimulation and forcing the victim’s mind to create some of its own, which could result in madness. Lecter only deprived him of his vision and partially immobilized him, yet it was enough to make him feel tense and vulnerable. In those conditions, people tended to have an active imagination and be paranoid, Will would be no exception and if it was indeed hallucinogens he was injected with, it would be only more vivid. He would receive no exterior stimuli, so his brains and hallucinogens would create some. And now the doctor was whispering about demons…His voice seemed less human as he listened to it…

“STOP IT!”

The priest voice wasn’t heard anymore and for a moment all Will could hear was his own breathing. Then, he heard another raspy sound, more a growl than breathing…

“Hannibal? Is that you?”

A chuckle was heard, malevolent and too deep to be human and Will started to feel scared.

_‘It’s only my imagination, my too efficient imagination and the drugs. It’s also that immobility and lack of vision, it makes me paranoid, but there is no one in that room but me and maybe Hannibal…’_

His thoughts were interrupted by a very strange voice which was growling more than talking, and it was definitely not the doctor’s one…Or maybe it was but Will’s drugged mind would hear it strangely? Yes, it was Hannibal it was Hannibal, just that crazy priest…But he couldn’t help but imagine _something else_ in the room, a presence without form, without face and definitely evil. No! It was Hannibal…

“What are you saying, Hannibal? I can’t hear you.”

He only heard another chuckle and stopped breathing. This sounded too real; oh he knew that drugs and imagination could be…

_“Let me in!”_

He nearly yelped in surprise as he felt two hands gripping his body and sharp nail digging in his skin. He felt the pain, he felt it! This was real…No, wait, the priest injected drugs in his system…But then he felt weight in his legs, as if someone was sitting on him, straddling him, and it was obviously something heavy and tall. Then he felt a breath near his ear. He tried to turn his head away, but he heard another evil chuckle.

_“Let me in…”_

Then he saw the thing over him, and he screamed this time, he didn’t try to hold back, he did scream, because what was here in the room wasn’t human. It’s face was ghostly white and unnaturally round, a hideous huge smirk showed three gigantic and sharp fangs, and it’s eyes…Two hole of darkness and nothing else, no organs there, just emptiness, no soul, but it could see…

Wait! No, it wasn’t possible, wasn’t it, it was the drug, because the priest injected him with something, didn’t he? Didn’t he..? Will felt doubt, he wasn’t even sure anymore, that thing looked so real…But wasn’t he blindfolded? No he wasn’t, because he could see! So if he wasn’t even blindfolded anymore, how could he be sure he was really drugged? The thing smiled even more hugely and leaned even more toward him.

_“You can’t run now, can you?”_

Then, the thing just bit in his neck so hard with its big fangs, and he could feel his blood flow out, he was going to die! He tugged on his bounds, the pain was too atrocious! But the demon was sucking his blood and while he was doing so, Will had the impression that his very essence, his mind, his soul were leaving him slowly, flowing out. His being was slowly lessening, and for a moment he thought death would claim him, he wondered if he was still alive or not. He had the impression to be on the verge of atmosphere, he felt that he was leaving for something bigger and silent, something he could hardly conceive before.

But a pain was felt as the fangs left his neck, then he saw the demon looking at him again, with his blood on his fangs and mouth and he understood he was still alive, and nothing was over. It was painful and with fear, the feeling to be really here and very alive came back. Then the thing vanished and he saw something else: Garrett Jacob Hobbs, the man he had to kill a month ago, the man who tried to kill his own daughter. He was here, with his dead eyes, the blood on him, but still a vicious smile on his face, and whispering: ‘ _see…see’._ Will wished he could shoot him again and again, but he knew it wouldn’t solve anything, Hobbs was here whether he liked it or not. He saw him in the past, but he had always been aware it was only his imagination, not reality, but here, he could feel his presence like something palpable, very real and tormenting.

“Leave me alone, you’re dead, leave me alone, Hobbs!”

_“I’m not leaving, never,”_ Hobbs said. _“I’m here with you, because we are the same, Will.”_

“I’m not like you, I’m not.”

_“Then how can you explain that you could see in my mind? That you felt what it was like to be me? You are me.”_

Before he could say anything, Hobbs kissed him on the lips and Will turned away, repulsed by this, and then instead of Hobbs, he saw Jack standing there.

“Jack? Jack, untie me…”

“No Will, this is where you belong.”

“What?”

“You’re insane Will; I can’t keep you with us. The Ripper can have you; you’re not useful to me anymore.”

“Don’t, please…”

“You’re insane, Will, do you hear me? It’s either the Ripper or an asylum. And what kind of agent lets a killer fuck him? You were weak, everyone is laughing at you, I can’t keep someone like you.”

“I wasn’t weak! I’m not weak!”

Suddenly, Jack disappeared, leaving Will furious, this wasn’t fair, how dared Jack to judge him and abandon him like this! Then, he saw Beverly standing in the shadows, she looked compassionate, she seemed sorry for him. He could see she was saying something but he couldn’t hear what, her mouth was moving but no sound was coming out.

“Beverly, I can’t hear you…”

He wished to reach to her badly, he thought of the time they had a coffee and he felt the wish to see her again, it was stupid, they weren’t that close, yet she was the one he would see right now and after what Jack told him, her strong presence was needed.

“Beverly, please, help me…”

She was speaking, obviously trying to tell him something but he still couldn’t hear a single thing! She was starting to fade away, and Will tried to reach to her but he couldn’t because of his bonds. He saw shadows standing over him then, their hands were reaching toward him, he couldn’t do anything but clench his jaw and his eyes but he could still hear them laughing and whispering:

_“You are like us, no need to deny…”_

_“You want to taste what those killers taste.”_

_“You crave this power…”_

_“You crave blood…”_

_“You can’t hide form us, we know you.”_

“I’m not a killer, I know who I am…”

_“You don’t, reality is fading for you.”_

_“Your personality is melting with those you’re tracking.”_

_“You arrested them but they’ll engulf you.”_

He listened to them as they were voicing out all his doubts and fears, his fear to fail, his fear to turn into a monster, his fear to lose his mind…He wanted nothing but leave of fight them off but he was powerless. He thought of Alana, Beverly and his dogs, it comforted him and he hoped he would see them again. Eventually, they faded, all Will heard were strange mumbling and sounds, and realizing he was returning to reality again, Will planted his nails in his palms, trying to feel real pain which would ground him. He made an effort to remember and the doubts he felt about being injected vanished. He was blindfolded, tied, and he had been drugged, everything he saw wasn’t real, it all came from his imagination and the torments he felt recently.

Breathing in deeply, Will made efforts to recollect himself, the drugs were fading and he could think clearly again. Lecter deprived him of his vision and there was hardly anything he could hear here anyway, so even if he wasn’t drugged anymore, he was still immobilized in a vulnerable position, he would still feel very wary and would have a hard time to relax, especially after what happened. His neck wasn’t hurting at all, but his back was and he realized he might have reopened some of his wounds by struggling against his visions. He wondered if the priest was still here or not.

“Hannibal?”

His voice was hoarse, and he received no answer. What time was it? He had no way to know and it was frustrating. When Hannibal was back it was the evening, he wasn’t sure how long his ‘bad trip’ lasted but it was probably not that long, it was certainly not morning already. How long would he remain like that? Having loss all notion of time wasn’t helping either, not at all, Will wondered if the Ripper had taken that in consideration or if it was just accidental. Even the brighter mind couldn’t think of everything all the time, but Will had the feeling that whenever it came to him, the priest would plan things carefully. He could try to sleep, but he knew it wouldn’t be possible while he was like that, or maybe if exhaustion took over, but he wasn’t sure he wanted to sleep, after those visions he got, he feared the nightmares.

He heard a cracking noise and couldn’t help but cringe. What was that? Probably nothing, but he couldn’t know, he couldn’t see. The image of the demon he imagined during his bad trip came back into his mind and for a moment he couldn’t help but imagine it, standing at the side of his bed, silently laughing and waiting for the perfect moment to attack and remind him he was very real…It stupid, he knew it, he didn’t believe in supernatural since he was a kid, he didn’t think demons were in hell, hell and devils could perfectly be found on Earth, and right now, he fell into the hands of one of those demons. He remembered his father telling him how falling into sin would lead you right into the devil’s jaw, he wondered what kind of sin he committed to fall into this.

Hours passed slowly, agonizingly all the same. Maybe it was only minutes, he couldn’t tell. How long did it take for someone to feel like they were slowly fading?

When he heard someone descend toward him, he couldn’t even flinch in fear, he was too tired but he almost hoped to see Hannibal, so this torture might finally end. Hands undid the blindfold and he saw Hannibal standing over him, he barely looked at the man, when he untied him, he just rose slowly, still seeing without looking.

“There is blood on your back.”

He didn’t give any answer and he hardly did anything when Hannibal cleaned his wounds again.

“What caused this?”

“I tried to fight the things I saw.”

“As you can see, trying to fight won’t lead you anywhere, you have to accept the path of redemption I gave you.”

When his back was clean again, Hannibal stood up and was about to leave the room, saying he would bring food and spare clothes, when Will’s voice rose and what he said made the man stop:

“Fine. I accept it.”

* * *

 

**Okay, this is pretty much what the demon Will see looks like. It's a representation of demons at a medieval monastery close to my native town, and I find those really creepy.**

** **

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, I know, I kind of broke the rythm alterning between Will chapters and Hannibal chapters, but it made more sense like this and anyway, Hannibal had the first chapters, so it does somehow restore some balance. Hope you enjoyed anyway, don't hesitate to tell me what you think! Kisses!


	10. Dante And Virgil

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For those who don't know Dante's inferno, in the book the Cocytus is the center of hell, it's all frozen, in contrary to the majority of representation of hell.

Hannibal wouldn’t lie to himself: watching Will tied and gagged had been delightful but also really tempting, and it had been hard for Lecter not to give in to his desire. Seeing the object of his desire lying, bound and at his mercy, unable to even see…Sure he loved his eyes, he adored those…But a blind Will had something really attractive too, a vulnerability which only reinforced Hannibal’s ownership over him, he could do anything he wanted and Will wouldn’t even be able to see it coming. Yet, he had to let this happen and not interfere. His prisoner hadn’t been long to react to the drugs, and then he had started to talk, struggle against things which Hannibal couldn’t see. He was curious to know what he had envisioned in his delirium.

He didn’t stay all the time, he had to go to sleep, get some rest. Yet Will said interesting things, Lecter would keep those in mind. When he came back the next day, he could see it in his prisoner’s eyes and behavior: Will wouldn’t fight anymore, he was exhausted. A feeling of triumph spread through the cannibal. After seeing him like this, Lecter didn’t want to push the punishment much farer for now, it would be useless. What Will went through already put his prisoner in a vulnerable state, yet he wasn’t ready to embrace his own darkness, patience would be the key.

When Will told him he would accept it, Hannibal had no doubts it was the case, but he was more resigning himself than accepting, he would fix that. When he came down again with some food and clothes, he had something new for Graham:

“The _Divine Comedy_?”

“Yes, it’s a book I enjoy a lot. Dante is making a journey through hell and the poet Virgil guides him. This is the first one about Hell, the most popular, but there are two others, about the Purgatory and Heaven”, Hannibal explained.

“Are you giving me this one so I can guess what my next punishment will be?”

He sounded exhausted, as if he couldn’t take it anymore. One last time and it would be over, but it could wait. After that, Will would transform.

“I just want you to read and think about it. Though my vision of God diverge from Dante’s one, his writing his magnificent and his imagination very fertile…Pretty much like yours.”

“Fine.”

“It’s a bilingual edition, Italian and English. Can you read Italian?”

“No, I don’t. I guess I will have to content myself with the English version.”

“You’ll enjoy it, believe me, there is much more to it than what people think.”

With a smile, he leaned and kissed Will’s neck and for the first time, he met no resistance from him, though he felt the way he straightened his stance, he wasn’t ready yet, it was obvious. He could still lay him down and have him again…Yet he wanted to show Will that the more he cooperated, the more respect he would get. Plus his captive had an exhausting night and his wounds reopened, Lecter wasn’t usually merciful with his prey, not at all, but Will wasn’t his usual prey, far from it, he was a potential companion and deserved much more. So instead he just whispered:

“Rest, and be careful about your back.”

Will just nodded and eventually, Hannibal left him, he had to go to work after all. He acted as usual, told his parishioners that they should pray for the victims of the Ripper again, and for anyone victim of such kind of violence. He could read in many of them emotions at his words, if only they knew! He thought again of Dante’s Inferno, he remembered reading that when he was still a teenager, he had been impressed by it, imagining every details of hell. After Mischa’s death, he remembered reading it again and it was partly one of the things that helped him recover his faith. Imagining the torturer’s he would kill into that hell…It had been satisfying, oh yes, deeply.

When he was done working, he wanted nothing but to go home, relax and spend some time with Will, yet he received a call: Alana. He was expecting this to happen one day or another, after all Will disappeared since three days and he had no doubt she was worried.

“Hello?”

“Hello Hannibal. Hum…I…I wondered if we could meet tonight, I would need to talk to you.”

“Of course, it has to do with the disappearance of your colleague?”

“You saw the newspaper?”

Oh yes, though it wasn’t needed, he did. The news had spread, reporters were speculating about what happened to Will Graham, a special agent with unique abilities disappearing while tracking the notorious Ripper…It was a dream coming true for any of those vultures.

“Yes, I wanted to call you but I preferred you to call me first, when you’ll be ready.”

It was a lie of course, he just had a very distracting guess.

“I invite you to my house, I have turkey, it will be perfect for two,” she proposed.

“Fine, I’ll bring some beer.”

“Thanks.”

He would have rather went back to Will but he couldn’t neglect his social life, he had to behave like he used to. Plus, it could benefit him: not only he had the chance to know what kind of lead the FBI was following but it would also be an occasion to show Will that he had other interests. Hannibal knew he was obsessed with Will and his prisoner was fully aware of it as well, that was why he wanted to show Will that in spite of his fixation, he would still live his life as he wished. Will would have to follow him and not the contrary, it was his prisoner’s duty to obey, if his captive ever wished to impose his wishes, he would have to prove himself first. And it was pretty enticing to imagine Will waiting for him, to wonder what he was doing, and eventually miss him. Yes, all in all, this was definitely a good idea.

She was charming as always, even if she was stricken with grief, she was doing her best to be a good hostess. She probably feared to make him uncomfortable by being to emotional, but she had idea how in reality Hannibal enjoyed this. He loved the sense of power and superiority he could feel, she was completely ignorant of Will’s fate while he knew everything, she had no idea that she was talking to his kidnapper, she could do nothing but wait while he could decide of everything.

“Some people think he might have committed suicide,” she whispered.

“Do you believe it?”

“No. Will was…He had issues and I’m pretty sure that this work might have made him feel more unstable but Will is not the kind to break that easily, I’m sure of it.”

She was right on that, after the kidnapping, the rape, the whipping, the confinement and the torture, more than one would be broken already, Will wasn’t totally, oh he did surrender to him, but was he really broken? Not totally, and Hannibal didn’t want him to be, if Will wanted to evolve, he needed to keep some feistiness.

“What do you think happened?”

“Well…I know there is a probability that he could have been killed. But if it was the Ripper, he would have exposed the corpse, to show his superiority over the FBI.”

“It’s highly probable. I’m not a specialist like you of course but it does make sense.”

“Jack thinks that he could be playing with us, that Will could be dead and he could be waiting to show us his corpse.”

“It could be a way to play with your hopes.”

“I hope it’s not the case…He could have been killed by someone else or…Maybe he had an accident somewhere and no one knows. Maybe he got kidnapped.”

“Yes, it’s possible. What would be the motive then? Money?”

“No, we would have received something already. I don’t know…I hope he is alright.”

Hannibal faked to be sorry and reassured her, but he was actually thinking of something else, Alana unwittingly gave him an idea. When he came back to Will, it was quite late and he found his prisoner reading again, Dante’s inferno this time. He smiled. When Will turned to him he had the reflex to back up slightly but didn’t stand up as he saw what Hannibal was holding, the priest reassured him:

“Don’t worry, this is not another punishment.”

“What is it then?”

“Everything necessary to take some of your blood.”

“Why do you want it for?”

“We’ll talk about that later. Give me your arm.”

With some hesitation, Will did as he was told and Hannibal started to remove some of his blood, filling a small bottle of it. He wouldn’t take a lot for now, he would take the rest the next day, he didn’t want to exhaust Will too much.

“Hannibal?”

“Yes?”

“You…You gave me meat in my meals…What kind of meat was it?”

This surprised the priest, he wasn’t expecting this question, at least not now, he thought it would take him more time to figure out or maybe that he would have to tell Graham. Maybe he actually underestimated Will. Feigning ignorance, he looked at him questioningly.

“It’s a strange question.”

“No, I don’t think so. You always took organs on your victims, we wondered why, we thought it was trophies. But I know what you’re doing with it now.”

“What is it I am doing?”

“You eat them. You’re a cannibal.”

Lecter smirked, and their eyes crossed and it felt as if for the first time since very long someone was _looking_ at him, the real him, another human being was staring into the abyss of him, was staring at what only God and himself could see before. Those angel’s eyes, icy blue piercing angel’s eyes were staring at him and he was starting to understand.

“How did you understand?”

“Tell me first, did you give me…”

“No. It wouldn’t have been proper for someone in penitence to eat another sinner. You’ll eat that meat only when you’ll be ready.”

It was the truth, for now Will hadn’t consumed any human meat, Hannibal hadn’t deemed it proper.

“I make sinners unknowingly eat other sinners, but to someone who can become like me…I want to give you the chance to know it the first time you’ll eat someone.”

The look of relief on Will’s face was obvious, Hannibal wondered since how long the man was torturing himself wondering if he eat someone or not. Lecter kissed him fully on the lips and embraced him. Though the embrace wasn’t returned, he met no resistance.

“Do you really think God wants that?”

“Of course he does. I understood it, killing and eating sinners is the best way to honor Him. He loves to see sinners devoured; didn’t you read Dante’s Inferno?”

While saying that he nibbled at the other man’s ear and caressed him under his shirt.

“I did. Sinners and demons often bite their own flesh in it. Satan devours eternally the biggest traitors of humanity…Does that really means…”

Will was stopped as Hannibal’s hold on him tightened and he bit his neck forcefully, earning a yelp of pain from him. Will reading into him only made Lecter long for him even more. He leaned over him giving him no choice but to lie down and the priest draped himself over his prisoner.

“You’re like Dante in the story, and I’m like Virgil: I’m guiding you through hell and heaven,” he murmured a this ear.

Tonight was maybe even more satisfying than any other. Though Will wasn’t responsive, he wasn’t resisting anymore and it was much better not to have to bother about restraining or threatening him, and the feeling of power remained, Will was submitting, he had restrained him mentally. He touched and kissed him to no end, and the fire inside him burned with the same ardor, wishing to devour him and Will altogether. He bit him profusely, never breaking the skin but enjoying in particular the feeling of his flesh under his teeth, and every time he crossed those eyes, the only human eyes which could really see him, as icy as the Cocytus where Satan himself was lying in wait…This just drove him insane, even more than before!

Once they were over, Hannibal was once again baffled by his lack of control. This morning, he stopped himself from doing this because he wanted to show Will some respect…Well, it was a little outburst, and it was worth it, spontaneity could give some things a very different taste. He looked at Graham who seemed deep in thoughts, his eyes staring at the atmosphere.

“Have you finished it?”

“What?”

“Dante’s Inferno.”

“Yes, it wasn’t long to read, and it’s not as if I had a lot to do. Do you want to eat me too?”

“No, I don’t. I want you to live.”

“Why do you take my blood for? Is it to drink it? Or do you plan to fake my death?”

“Let’s say I will play a little game with the FBI. You’ll join it once you’re ready.”

“What kind of game?”

“I wouldn’t want to spoil everything for you.”

A short moment of silence passed between the two, Will mostly seemed thoughtful, tired and in spite of his quiet demeanor, Hannibal could see he was tormented.

“You wonder if I told you the truth.”

“Indeed. Please, do me a favor, don’t lie to me. Omit things if you want but don't straightly lie to me.”

“I will, if you pay me the same respect.”

Will nodded and Hannibal told him again that he didn’t make him eat human meat, but he would in the future. The next day, he took some of his blood again and prepared everything for his next plan.

He had an idea for a crime, nothing very original but still satisfying. This very evening, he waited for his prey. His next victim was Freddie Lounds, a particularly annoying journalist who wrote stupid things about Will, and who was incredibly rude (he met her once out of hazard and she got on his nerve). That idiotic woman wasn’t expecting anything, when he jumped on her, she tried to struggle but he had no difficulty to kill her. He cut some of her hairs, to keep it as a trophy and took her kidneys. He exposed her naked body in a farm, near the pig’s den, where she belonged. With her hair cut, her body naked, stabbed and in the mud near the pigs, she lost pretty much all her arrogance. Somehow, she looked better like this. Another sinner to eat…He hoped she would at least taste good. This time, Hannibal added something in addition to the corpse, a message addressed to Jack Crawford and his team.

It was written with blood on a wall: _Find where Graham’s corpse is, and I’ll give you a hint of who I am._    

Soon enough, the science team could find out that the blood belonged not to Freddie Lounds but to Will Graham. Alana phoned Hannibal, in tears, telling him that Will was obviously dead and he offered comfort, not showing once how much he was gloating. He wondered how long they would search for a non-existent corpse.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not my best chapter, but this one was hard to write. Hope you enjoyed it, don't hesitate to tell me what you think! And yeah, killing Lounds is pretty much a little pleasure of mine, but I really hate the character, so...I just can't stop myself!


	11. Epiphany

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I thought the last chapter was hard to write, well, that one was worse! But I'm really satisfied with it! Don't hesitate to tell me if I make grammar mistakes. Hope you'll enjoy, thanks to everyone who commented and gave me kudos, your support is very appreciated!

 

In his cell, Will was lying on the bed, looking at the ceiling, resting from the blood removal. He wasn’t sure what Hannibal intended to do exactly, but he was pretty sure it involved faking his death. Yet he didn’t took much blood, he would need more than that for Will to be officially declared dead. Another idea was scaring him: what if Hannibal would try to frame him for a crime? It was possible. He would have to ask again, he hoped the priest wouldn’t lie to him.

If he doubted of Hannibal’s honesty, it was because Will had said some lies, in contrary to what Lecter wished, but hell, it wasn’t going to make him feel bad. For example, he had already read the _Divine Comedy_ , when he was young. Also, he could read and speak Italian, his father taught him so he would be able to read Dante in its original tongue. At home they would speak Italian sometimes; it was some sort of game. Now he was a little rusty, but he still had an excellent level, and he read the whole test in its original form, once again, Hannibal unwittingly gave him something to remind himself of his father.

Will had decided not to tell Hannibal about his religious education because he wanted to have some kind of advantage. The priest wouldn’t know he was reminding him of his father, and more of all, he would give Lecter the illusion he was making Will discover all of it. The priest was probably persuaded he was making him plunge into an unknown world therefore changing his personality, while Will actually knew all of that and it was somehow already a part of his personality. Yet it wouldn’t be enough.

Even if it was his intention to fool Hannibal into believing he accepted his ‘path’, Will wasn’t completely pretending when he played the broken man. Before the sensorial deprivation, he considered escaping and returning to his old life, but now…Strangely, it was as if there would be nothing out of this room, it seemed that even if he got out, even if he destroyed the priest, he would never really go home...When he was tied, he had the feeling to fade away, and it didn’t leave. He felt as if he wasn’t really complete; empty of something, cold and with o other goal. He couldn’t picture his future; he was here, only here, lying in wait. Was Lucifer feeling like that while being frozen in the Cocytus?

The way he felt soiled wasn’t helping much either. The last time, he let Hannibal do what he wanted, he hadn’t fight back and somehow, it had been a relief. He didn’t enjoy it nor want it, it still disgusted him, but it had been easier to just let him and wait for it to be over. He knew he would have to do that anyway, if he wanted the priest to trust him. He still wanted to destroy him, even if he couldn’t get his life back, he would at least have is revenge.

He looked at the side and saw his books. It made him think of his father again. He wondered what Robert would have said if he had heard Hannibal’s way of worshipping God. He would have been horrified and baffled at such heresy; cannibalism wasn’t a way to worship God, certainly not. He remembered the day he told his dad he didn’t believe in God anymore.

_“Will, this is…This is madness, you can’t just turn your back on God…”_

_“Dad, I don’t believe in that anymore, it’s my choice, I don’t want to hurt you…”_

_Robert huffed in disbelief and walked to his son who backed away slightly. His dad was rarely violent, Will had never been abused physically, but he knew how much he didn’t joke with religion, what would he do? Instead, his father grabbed his shoulder and shook him slightly._

_“Hurt me?! Hurt me! Will, it’s you you’ll hurt, don’t you see that you’ll be damned? You’ll go in hell!”_

_Will grabbed his wrist, to prevent him from doing anything else. He was still scared whenever his father was like that._

_“I’m not going in hell, dad, all my life you taught me religion and now I don’t believe in it anymore.”_

_“Will, I won’t tolerate that. Your mother…Your mother was a bad woman and she didn’t believe in God, in marriage, she fooled me…”_

_“Dad, please don’t talk about mom…”_

_He hated it whenever he would speak of his mom. He explained him that his mother didn’t want to stay with them, that she gladly left them. Once, Robert contacted her and tried to convince her to meet her son but she rejected him, Will had been hurt more than he wished to admit._

_“She abandoned you, she abandoned you because she was a heretic, and you’re becoming like her!”_

_“I’m not! I’ll be someone good, I’ll have a decent life, don’t worry.”_

_“God will punish you!”_

_“No, he won’t. Dad there is no Go…”_

_“DON’T SAY THAT!”_

_Will had stopped right now; he didn’t want to go any further. The conversation went on and finally, Robert just stopped trying to convince him._

_“I’ll pray for you Will, I’ll pray the Lord to have mercy, and I’ll pray for you to see the light again.”_

_“If you want, dad.”_

A thought came to him, horrible and disturbing but he couldn’t help it: what if his dad was right? What if God really existed and what if this was his punishment? What if God put him in this hell on earth to show him where his heretic life got him? It was stupid, he knew that, it was a perverted image of God, but he couldn’t help it.

 

He had to admit that he hadn’t known a lot of happiness since he left his father. When he had started as a cop, he had been happy, but then he realized that there was a lot of corruption among police. He went to the FBI because he had more hopes about it, even though he knew corrupted agents existed, he felt that he would be able to help more people here. His first years at the academy had been happy; he got a girlfriend he really loved, but then he had been refused as an agent because of his instability. Then he became a teacher and though he hadn’t been unhappy, he wasn’t totally happy either. Was it because he turned his back to God?

Yet, he thought of some people he liked, people who were atheist, like Alana or Beverly. Those two were happy, it was obvious, they didn’t have perfect lives, but they were happy, and they were good people. For a moment he imagined them among the flames or hell, tormented by demons, through rains of fire. There was some beauty in this picture, and strangely, Will indulged in it, to see those two women in the middle of the flames, half-conscious and at the mercy of demons, fragile lambs in the middle of hell…There was beauty in this. Yet it didn’t fit.

Would God truly send Beverly or Alana in hell or make them go through what he went through? Would God really punish atheists just because they didn’t believe in him? No. Hannibal probably believed that, but he didn’t.

No, it wasn’t because he had turned his back to God. Yet, praying, remembering his dad’s words and reading those books Hannibal gave him made him feel that God did exist. Then why did he send him here? Maybe it was because he ignored something in him, something which he shouldn’t have ignored. The thought made Will shiver, because he felt he was getting close to a truth he didn’t like. Something in him was starting to be torn apart, there was a dividing in his soul, and it was only giving power to something else, something he feared. And in that he was broken.

He heard the door opening, and looked dully at the priest coming downstairs. He had some food for him, Will was relieved to see he would have food, he was getting hungry.

“Thank you.”

“Still no meat as you wished, but you will eat some very soon.”

“What kind?”

“The best kind.”

It made him shiver again but he didn’t show anything. Hannibal kissed him and for the very first time, he kissed him back. It wasn’t good, but it was bearable. He had been through worse. The priest was enticed by his behavior, circling his neck and back, leaning closer. When they broke apart, Hannibal seemed a little suspicious however.

“You never did that before.”

“I know. To be honest, I’m tired not to do anything.”

This made the priest smirk. He let him eat what he brought; Will had to admit this bastard had talent for cooking, and he couldn’t help but wonder how he cooked his victims. Once he was done, he asked Hannibal the question he asked himself earlier.

“Tell me, did you take my blood to frame me for a murder?”

The priest raised an eyebrow, pretty surprised obviously.

“Why would I do that?”

“I don’t know, to deprive me of the hope to find a normal life again.”

“Didn’t I show you already there was no turning back?”

“But the punishment isn’t over, isn’t it?”

“No, we have one last step before it stops.”

“Then how do I know this isn’t my last punishment? Making me looks like a murderer?”

“Because there would be no gratification in this, I want you to kill by yourself, not frame you. I did that to fake your death.”

“You didn’t take enough of my blood to fake my death.”

“Oh, I wasn’t just going to spread blood over somewhere, that wouldn’t be creative. You investigated my work enough to know I like to be creative.”

It made sense, Will knew it. He was about to ask more, when Hannibal took something out of his pocket, it was wrapped in a piece of cloth, not allowing his to see what it was, but he had a bad feeling.

“The next part of your punishment is coming. This object is precious to me, just like the whip I never used it on anyone except myself, and I rarely used it.”

He unwrapped the cloth and what Will saw made him cringe in fear. He had never seen one in his life but his father told him about it once thank God his dad considered this as a wrong practice.

“You are going to…”

“Put your wrists together.”

Will knew he had to comply. In his state of mind, Hannibal was persuaded that submission was part of his transformation, that if he accepted this punishment, he accepted God. So he did a he was told with no protest and let Hannibal wrap the cilice around his wrists. Those special chains were made with metal spikes which would pierce the skin if tightened enough, normally it had to be tied to the upper thigh, he didn’t know why Hannibal put it around his wrist instead, but he was kind of glad.

“Cilices were originally clothes made of rough materials such as goat hairs, to irritate the skin and mortify the flesh. With time, it changed, and people created those special chains and gave it that name, it’s still used in Opus Dei,” Hannibal explained calmly, as if he was talking to a student and not putting a torture device on a man he captured.

“Opus Dei?”

His voice was trembling slightly, the device wasn’t hurting him too much for now, it wasn’t thrusting deep and he wasn’t even bleeding yet. Still it did sting and hurt, and he felt that if he moved too much, it would be worse.

“A particular religious order, pretty extreme compared to others. This one is precious to me because it helped me a lot in my moments of doubts, I used it once after thinking of you, but it didn’t work, in fact it had a reverse effect, just like the whip.”

Once he said that, he tightened the device around him and this time the skin was pierced. Will let out a wince, blood didn’t come out immediately, the cuts weren’t large enough already but Hannibal smelled his wrists, and Will felt disgust overcome the pain. The man was like a shark; no, actually even a shark wasn’t that bad.

“Does the smell of blood entice you?”

“It’s a powerful thing. You never felt the eager to taste someone else’s blood?”

Will was about to shout ‘no!’ indignantly, but he hold himself from that. And actually…He couldn’t help but wonder what it would be like. Would it taste good, or would it only be enjoyable for the sake of feeling powerful? He remained silent, he didn’t like the way he asked himself really unhealthy questions lately.

“I don’t think so,” Will muttered. Hannibal could hear doubt. “Ouch!”

Hannibal had tightened it again and this time very small drops of blood started to run from his wrists. He licked those away and Will had a hard time to retain a shiver.

“I’m sorry if this makes you uncomfortable,” Hannibal muttered, though he didn’t look sorry at all.

“Now that I know what kind of hunger you have, it doesn’t reassure me.”

“I wouldn’t eat you, it would be a big waste. You’re much better alive.”

His head felt light at this moment, nausea and vertigo were making it hard to remain still, the priest grabbed his shoulders gently stopping him from lying down. Why was he feeling like this?

“Did you drug me?”

“No, you’re simply tired and overwhelmed. I don’t want you to be drugged for this part; I need you to be very aware of what’s happening. You know I imposed pain to myself, before realizing I needed to confess. You’re going to do the same.”

“You want me to…”

“I’m a priest. It’s my duty to receive confessions. Go ahead, confess.”

Will hesitated, he didn’t want to do this, he had confessed as a kid, his father made him go to confession often, and he didn’t confess since he was eighteen, since he decided to tell his father he didn’t believe in God anymore. He never really liked confession, being forced to bath in your own guilt; to tell things you didn’t want to tell anyone otherwise God would send you to hell…He asked once to his father why they had to confess, because if God was all-knowing, then he should know what sins they made and if they were sorry or not. His father explained that it was the best way not to continue to sin, because we could obtain guidance from a man of God. Each time he confessed, he comforted himself in the thought that at least the priest would hear dozens of confession so he wouldn’t really pay attention to his in particular. However, this time the priest would be _very_ attentive.

“I was angered…I had sex outside marriage. I took pride in my work.”

He confessed only regular sins, but they both knew it wasn’t the most important. Hannibal was waiting for more. When he came to it, he feared the priest’s reaction.

“I…When I was eighteen, I turned my back to God.”

Hannibal nodded, showing him he had to go on. He remembered he told Lecter his father wasn’t very religious, he had to stick to that lie.

“We weren’t very religious, but we would still go to church from time to time…Until I decided I didn’t believe in God.”

“Why didn’t you believe in God anymore?”

“I don’t know…”

He did, his father smothered him with it, and even though he loved his dad, he also felt imprisoned. Yet he couldn’t say that. Hannibal tightened the cilice again and this time it was really hurting hard, Graham understood he had to reply quickly if he didn’t want it to be worse. Blood was starting to cascade down his arms.

“I think I was lost…My empathy wasn’t helping me at all, praying wasn’t helping, and I felt like there was no God.”

He said that through gritted teeth, his body was starting to tremble, pain wasn’t unbearable but it was still horrible.

“Do you still feel the same?”

“No.”

“You believe in God now?”

He nodded. Hannibal didn’t tighten the cilice this time but squeezed it a little with his hands and when Will tried to pull away, the spikes scratched his skin badly and even more drops of blood ran. Thank God, the inside of his wrist were stuck together and therefore couldn’t be scratched or pierced, otherwise the loss of blood would be more important.

“Don’t pull away; I want to be sure you’re telling the truth.”

“Yes…”

His teeth were gritted together; he felt the blood pumping in his temple, giving him a headache.

“It’s…I think God…God wanted me to see…”

“To see what?”

“His existence and…Mine…I tried to kill something in me…But I can’t do it anymore.”

“What is it you tried to kill?”

He breathed in and told Hannibal.

“The part of me…Which wants more than empathizes with killers.”

It was scary, really scary, because right now, it wasn’t a lie he was saying, it was a true realization, a big one. It felt like a lightning hit him, making something fall apart in him. He knew now, he couldn’t hide it from himself anymore.

What he told Lecter was exactly what he thought but tried not to acknowledge: his fascination for murders often made him wish he could get more…He had morals, he didn’t want to kill and at the same time he longed for it, and it seemed that God wanted him to stop hiding from that. God didn’t make him through that because he became an atheist, it would have been the same if he had remained religious. It was in order to corner him to a situation where he wouldn’t have the choice anymore.

Those thoughts were probably clear in his eyes, because Lecter smirked hugely before kissing him, and Will fell on the bed, not moving anymore while Lecter explained he would have to wear the cilice for another hour, and then he would take it off.

“You finally realized why God brought us together. I have to show you the path. That’s God’s will.”

He just nodded without a word. Will wasn’t broken, but he was definitely changing, evolving. Hannibal was right, somehow. He was right.

* * *

**What a cilice looks like, I can't believe some people use that kind of things today:**

 


	12. Opus Dei

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you're ready for creepiness because this one is in Hannibal's point of view.

If Hannibal Lecter was known for one thing, it was his talent for cooking and his ability to know when it was the right moment to invite people. After the FBI found the Ripper’s message, he decided to host a small dinner and invite Alana as well as Jack Crawford and some of her colleagues from the FBI, in order to show them his support. If he hadn’t been close to Alana, he wouldn’t have done it but she was giving him a good pretext to invite them.

Five people came in total, Alana, Jack, Beverly Katz, Jimmy Price and Brian Zeller. He was curious to know all of them.

“It’s nice of you to invite us all,” Jimmy said, “I admit it’s the first time I come in a priest’s house. I wasn’t expecting that.”

His house was quite plain (though he was rich thanks to the way he manipulated some of his parishioners to put him on their last wills) but elegant and without religious adornment except for an imitation of a Madonna by Filippo Lippi, but even that picture was simple. Hannibal smiled.

“Were you expecting the walls to be covered with crosses and idols?”

He earned some laughter at this and Jimmy blushed slightly in confusion.

“I’m sorry, I don’t mean that.”

“I know, I was merely teasing,” Hannibal said genuinely. “A lot of people actually expect my home to look like a church, but outside work, I live a normal life.”

“I can testify of that,” Alana added. “Anyway, Jimmy is right, it was nice of you to invite us.”

“We all lost someone, you lost a colleague, and I lost one too.”

“You and Father Lowry were close?” Jack asked.

“Yes, our churches were quite close and we would replace each other at occasions.”

“Jack, I hope you aren’t going to interview him,” Beverly said half-jokingly though she sounded a little down.

“No, of course no, I was merely asking. We didn’t know Will since long but it had been a shock, I can’t imagine what it was like for you if you knew him since long, Father.”

“I try to comfort myself by thinking he is with God now, I’m sure he is. Your colleague probably is with God too.”

“I hope so,” Alana murmured.

A short silence followed, Hannibal could gauge their reaction, they all seemed sad, Alana was thoughtful, he could notice an hint of guilt in Jack’s expression, Price and Zeller were both looking at Beverly with some worry, and he saw Agent Katz was breathing heavily. She stood up and asked him where the bathroom was, before he could answer, Alana proposed to show her and the two women left the room.

“Seems like I said too much. I didn’t mean it.”

“It’s not your fault, Beverly had taken a liking on Graham, she got closer to him than Jimmy or I,” Brian explained.

When the two women came back, he could see Beverly put some water on her face, she looked shaken but she was keeping countenance. Alana had a hand over her shoulder, they both sat and they continued to eat. None of them revealed much about the investigation, Hannibal wasn’t expecting anything else, agents weren’t supposed to give info like this to citizen, even if they were priests or inviting them for a dinner. He just learned that they had no ideas of where Graham’s corpse could be, but Hannibal knew that. If only they knew Will was down there, in the basement…He had given a sedative to his captive, though he had the feeling Will wouldn’t have called them out, he preferred to avoid this temptation for now. One day he would test Will’s loyalty, but for now, his apprentice was in a fragile state. But the irony was pretty funny when he thought about it.

It was one of the purpose of this invitation, to bring them so close to Wil, because it was just funny to see them so oblivious. He also wanted to know them better, agent Crawford especially, the man could be of use. At first, when Alana asked if she could invite the science team, Hannibal wondered if they would be really useful, but now he didn’t regret, he was discovering interesting elements.

They discussed various elements, they didn’t talk only of Will and Father Lowry. Once dinner was over, when it was getting late, Jimmy, Beverly and Brian left, only Alana and Jack stayed. They were drinking some wine, and Hannibal remembered some even g he spent with Lowry, and he felt a little thug in his heart for the older priest. Killing him had been worth it but he was nostalgic.

“You’re definitely a good, it was one of the best dinner I ever got,” Jack affirmed.

“If I say that to Phyllis, she won’t appreciate,” Alana teased.

“I thought of becoming a professional cook at a time, but eventually I decided to become a priest.”

“You could have been a shrink, you’re good at it.”

Alana was trying to sound fine but he could read the sadness underneath, she was sad for Will, maybe she had a soft spot for him, he wouldn’t be surprised by this. Maybe agent Katz also had a soft spot for him, the way she left the room was pretty tale-telling. It was a nice feeling to be the one owning Will in spite of those two women wanting him.

“Being a priest is a little like being a shrink on some points. You listen to people’s deepest shames, thoughts and secrets. You can’t tell anything, you have to respect the secret of confession. And once they are done, you have to give them advises, try to help them figure out how to make things better. So having notions in psychology is definitely useful.”

He sipped some wine and looked at agent Crawford, the man was also sad but guilty, and guilty people tended to feel the need to confess.

“In fact if you feel the need to talk, I’m here to hear you.”

“I’m not really into religion. Is that why you invited us?”

Hannibal nodded and lowered his eyes. Jack was a little smarter than he expected.

“I admit it. Alana and I are friends since long, when she told me how everyone was affected by the loss of agent Graham, I wanted to offer some help. But people can be wary when I approach them as a priest, so I decided to approach you as a civilian.”

“It wasn’t an accusation, I just wanted to know,” Jack murmured.

Hannibal was pretty sure he would see agent Crawford again. When he and Alana were gone, he went to Will who was awake. He was reading the Bible, his wrist were bandaged from the fresh cuts made by the cilice. He went at his side and Will stopped to read, though he didn’t close his book and Hannibal saw he was reading the Apocalypse.

“One of the most interesting and poetic part of the Bible, hundreds of theologians debated over its meaning, and it still fascinates.”

“I was reading the part about the woman clothed in the sun and the dragon. I think I saw a picture about it once.”

“By William Blake, isn’t it?”

“Maybe, it’s a woman lying on the ground and a big dragon towering over her.”

“It’s this one. Blake did a wonderful work with this. Why that moment in particular?”

“I don’t know, I…I keep envisioning something.”

“What is it?”

“People I know burning in the flames of hell.”

Interesting, Will was exploring his new personality already.

“Tell me more. Who are those people?”

The profiler smiled without joy and looked straightly at Hannibal, something that enticed him, he just couldn’t get enough of those eyes, especially now that Will was going through so many things, so many changes…

“Father, you said you needed to trust me.”

“Yes, I did.”

“I need to trust you too. If I tell you who those people are, what tells me you won’t go and kill them?”

“You wouldn’t want me to?”

“No, it’s people I actually esteem. That’s why it’s so weird, I don’t know why I imagine them in the flames, it’s not right.”

“Fine, I won’t kill them. You have my word on that. Who are they?”

“Alana, who you already know and Beverly, one of my colleagues.”

Of course, the one who got close to Will. His prisoner ignored he meet his colleagues during the evening, and it would remain as such.

“How do you see things happening, what is your role in this?”

“It…It depends. Sometimes I see them simply in the middle of the fire, with the flames on them but not damaging them, just making them suffer. They scream, they can’t escape. Sometimes I see them under a rain of fire. Sometimes, I’m not here, it’s just devils I see, tormenting them. Sometimes it’s me who is there,” his voice started to go slower, “and I’m the one harassing them in the middle of the fire. It’s a little like this painting, I’m standing over them and all they can do is wait.”

Upon hearing this, Lecter had a hard time containing the jealousy that spread in him like wildfire. This wasn’t only a sign of Will’s slow changes, this was a sexual fantasy.

“Did you ever see things like that?”

“When I was a kid, I imagined people I didn’t like in hell, but it was only people I disliked.”

Of course, nothing similar. Here, it was women, two women who had a soft spot for Will and who got close to him in spite of his unsocial behavior. He lusted for them. Maybe he wasn’t even aware of that, but he did lust for them, in a dark way, he was pretty sure he envisioned them naked in the middle of the fire…For a moment, he wanted to hit him, put his hand around his throat, smother him until he was half-conscious and then ravish him in a violent way, to make his scream and feel this hell he fantasized over…

Yet he contained himself. He had no right to blame Will for his lust after all, he had been lusting for another man while being a priest, he had been sloppy enough to take him by force, a wonderful memory but also an error because he should have seduced him. Plus lust didn’t mean love, what he felt for Will wasn’t only desire; he was in love with him. He loved him for his strength, his intelligence, for this darkness barely waking up inside him, for this incredible power of seeing through anyone…Will lusted for those women, fine. He would forget them soon enough however, he would make him lust for him, love him in a way that would give him no choice but stay at his side whatever happened…

“I have your word? You won’t kill them?”

The jealousy grew strong again, in spite of all the thoughts he had, he couldn’t help but be incredibly jealous. Yet he didn’t show anything, he perfected his mask over the year.

“You have my word, I won’t betray you. Now, tell me, how do you feel during those visions?”

“Powerful. They are just weak and at my mercy. Maybe that’s why I envisioned the Dragon and the Woman. There is some beauty in this picture, it’s strange.”

“Not really, people always feared hell but also fantasize over it a lot, find a beauty in it. We are all attracted to evil, some of us more than the others, it’s a way to explore our own darkness.”

Then he couldn’t help but imagine Will in the middle of the fire, in hell, and it was indeed something glorious. He imagined him first as a damned, screaming in the middle of the flames, melting with those and then he imagined him becoming a fierce demon tearing lost souls apart. Then, he finally imagined himself like the Red Dragon, towering over Will, who would be instead of the woman; he would also be clothed in the sun, looking at him with a melt of fear and respect.

Will was about to speak but was interrupted when Hannibal kissed him fiercely. During the whole time he thought of this, Will in hell, at his mercy, and it was incredibly satisfying. He knew it was sinful for a man of God but right now, he allowed himself to be sinful, every time he bit Will’s skin, every time his captive answered with a hiss or a gasp, it was just overjoying. Will was starting to respond, scratching him or biting him quite shyly and he loved it! Not only for the pleasurable shivers it would send in his body but also for the fact that Will was participating, embracing this relationship. All the while, he braced him possessively, as if he wanted to smother him with his presence, so he would think only of him, his mind, heart, soul would only focus on him.

He fell asleep in the same bed as him, it was the first time. Usually, he would go back and sleep in his room, because he knew there was a possibility for Will to do something dangerous, yet tonight he didn’t care, he fell asleep while holding him. When he awoke the next day, he saw his prisoner didn’t sleep much, it could be because he gave him a sedative quite early before the dinner and therefor he had already slept before night, but he had the feeling Will had been bothered by his presence. Is captive was an unsocial man, and what they were sharing was still fragile; He would need to strengthen their bonds. He had an idea for that.

When evening came, Hannibal cooked again another dinner, but for two this time and with special meat. He was glad he kept Lowry’s heart in the freezer, usually he didn’t like to freeze the meat, it could lose some of its flavor, but the Father had been someone close to him and he wanted to keep him for a special occasion. He ate his livers some days ago, with white wine and with Alana while she was crying over Will’s disappearance. He still had some of Lounds also, though he fed the agents with most of her meat and blood. Yet he would certainly be able to prepare something for Will another time. Tonight, he would do to Father Lowry the honor to be Will’s first human dish.

He was happy when he led his prisoner in the dining room, the only times he would make Will walk in the rest of the house was whenever he would let him take a shower, and it was always under the threat of a weapon. Tonight however, he led him in the dining room, still threatening him with a knife, he tied his upper body to the chair, honestly, would could have freed himself, but it would take time to undo every knots and undo the rope. The profiler noticed that.

“Do you really think this will be useful?”

“It’s a precaution. Our bond is still too fragile, but I have a feeling you wouldn’t try to run away anyway.”

“A power show, then?”

“Maybe. You still need to evolve to be my equal, Will, I already told you that.”

He served the meat; it was stuffed with mushrooms and onions, served with small vegetables. Will seemed apprehensive and nervous; obviously he wasn’t expecting this to come now.

“Who is that?”

“Father Lowry, it’s his heart we are eating. He was a good man, so I saved it for a special occasion.”

“You had no remorse killing him?”

“I’m nostalgic, but I wouldn’t like to dwell on remorse. Father Lowry returned to God, and you’re about to discover Him.”

He watched Will expectantly and the man seemed to understand. He cut a small piece of the meat and after a moment of hesitation, put it in his mouth. Hannibal smiled in delight, a predatory smile, as he saw Will’s lips twitch, obviously disturbed by what he did. Yet he took another bit and another. Still watching Will all the while, he also took some bit. Lowry had a tender heart, figuratively and literally, it tasted good in spite of the fact it had been frozen. Looking at Will, who was still a little off but eating, he decided to remind him this was a human being, he didn’t want him to forget what he was eating.

“I met Father Lowry when I moved here. He was one of the first people I met; he helped me to establish myself. He liked to talk about his parishioners with me, and he liked when I spoke about psychology. We would confess each other.”

“That’s why you couldn’t bear him to know about me,” Will murmured.

“I couldn’t let him live, he saw me, the real me, for a moment. He had been a friend but he isn’t someone I would have spared at any cost. It’s not like our dear Alana. I like her a lot, I would have to be cornered to it to kill her.”

“How did he react when he learned?”

“He was scared for you. It was really a kind soul, foolish, but kind.”

Will looked at the piece of meat in his plate, Hannibal was glad that he told him that, especially when Will started to eat again, in spite of what he said. It had been a test, to see if knowing he was eating a man who had been worried about him would affect Will, but it wasn’t or not enough. Oh, to see those lips swallowing the meat…He would kiss those after the dinner, just to taste how Will’s own savor was melting with the one of a human heart.

“How does it feel like?”

“It’s strange. To be here while he is…Well, in my plate.”

“It makes you the ultimate predator.”

“You’re the one who killed him.”

“Maybe. But by eating him, you participate. You consummate his flesh and take a part in God’s work.”

“If I’m not wrong, according to you, God’s work is about sinners devouring each other in a big game.”

“Of course, and by eating, you’re accepting this. One day, you’ll choose your own dishes.”

Will nodded slowly and eat all the meat away. Hannibal was content, just like the times when he was sinning with his prisoner. He hadn’t felt such a plain sentiment of satisfaction since long before meeting Will.


	13. Pandemonium

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone! Instead of my usual little comments, I would like to address a message to any French readers. Being French myself, I feel affected by what recently happened in Nice, even if I didn't lose anyone, I'm angered and sad for what happened to the people in there: 
> 
> S'il y a des lecteurs français pour cette histoire, et si vous avez perdu quelqu'un pendant les événements récents à Nice, alors je veux vous présenter mes plus sincères condoléances. Je n'ai perdu personne moi-même, mais c'est arrivé pas si loin de chez moi et ça reste un événement tragique pour tous les français. Je compatis donc avec vous et j'espère qu'il y aura des jours meilleurs.

After the dinner, Will had been chained in the basement again, he opposed no resistance to Hannibal when he started to kiss and undress him. He was too focused on what he did to pay attention to what Hannibal was doing. He eat a human being…He eat a human being knowing perfectly what he was doing…He should have felt like puking, but no. He couldn’t even say how he was feeling, but he had to admit, there was something empowering to it, being the one eating and not the dish.

When the priest’s caresses and touches became more intense, Will reported his attention on him. He still didn’t enjoy sex, that wouldn’t change, and he was still feeling dirty each time. He forced himself to respond, so the priest would be fooled. Hannibal was practically devouring his lips, and Will didn’t need to be told that the cannibal wanted to taste the meat on his mouth. His hands arms were embracing him, almost caging him to show he couldn’t escape, and his hands running over his back feverishly. Then the man nipped his jaw and kissed his neck in a passionate way, so much that Will felt almost smothered. He couldn’t think of anything else at this moment, Hannibal was completely engulfing him into what he was doing.

He held back a yelp of pain as the man started to be more intense with him, yet that wasn’t the most difficult part, the worse was to actually cross his stare. He already hated to look at someone in the eyes, but to see the eyes of the man who did that to him…To see the crazy, obsessive lust in those pupils and not being able to turn away. That in itself was violating. At least when he wasn’t facing Lecter during the act, he could avoid his stare more, but tonight, the priest wanted him to lie on his back, so he would be more at ease to kiss him.

When Hannibal drove into him, the profiler couldn’t help but emphasize and imagine how Lecter felt: overwhelmed, ecstatic, like fire was running through his veins instead of blood. The physical pleasure was melting with the satisfaction to dominate and possess him.

It seemed endless, but eventually, Will succeeded in taking his mind away.

Earlier that day, during morning, Will had taken a decision: he would build himself a mind palace. He had heard of this, in the past, mind palaces were often used to make the memory more efficient and some people would actually ‘retreat’ in it to think in a more efficient way, to avoid being bothered during their meditation or reflection. He decided he would build his own mind palace, thanks to his very active imagination and creative mind it wasn’t hard.

By reading everything Hannibal gave him, Graham was remembering a lot of things he read or saw in his youth, for example, reading the Apocalypse made him remember the woman clothed in the sun and the dragon, and now he was remembering vaguely ‘Paradise Lost’ by Milton. It was when he was fourteen, the priest of the church he and his father attended told the parents that Milton’s work was a great work and he advised everyone to read it. Robert Graham didn’t have much time to read because he was working a lot, but he insisted that his son would read it. So Will went to the local library and took it. To be honest, it hadn’t been that bad, though a little too old-fashioned for him at the time, but he had liked what Milton had described as the Pandemonium.

The Pandemonium was the city of hell, where Satan and the demon lived. It was the time when he was starting to feel rebellious and was questioning God, and everything dark and hellish were having some kind of attraction toward him, as it would for a lot of teenagers. Today, while he was locked in here alone for hours, he had somehow built his own city of hell, like some kind of hellish mind palace.

This would definitely be a good way to have more space from this small room and his captor, he would be able to stock his knowledge, and also remember useful or comforting things, elements of his childhood for example. He wanted to be able to memorize the little dreams he enjoyed creating, like Beverly and Alana in hell. He wanted to have a part in his mind where he could put all his dark thoughts and fantasies now that he didn’t wish to hide from it anymore.

To be honest, he wondered at first why he enjoyed imagining Alana and Bev in hell, but when he spoke about it to Lecter, he saw something: jealousy. That’s maybe through Hannibal’s eyes that he had realized it enticed him in a sexual way. Every time, he imagined them naked (he couldn’t picture their real bodies because he had never seen them naked before but he imagined) and it was good, disturbing but good. Now he didn’t want to hurt any of them, he was fond of those women, but picturing them through the magnificence of hell, because hell was magnificent in a twisted way, well it gave some pleasure. Hannibal knew it now.

It had been an error to tell him, but he did. Will wanted to speak to him about something personal to gain his trust, but Hannibal managed to make his say more than he wished. Plus, and maybe it was the most difficult part to admit, Will wanted to talk about his thoughts and feelings and Hannibal was the only one around. That’s why he did something so sloppy. Though Will didn’t talk about it as a sexual fantasy, Hannibal read through him and understood him more than himself. Lecter had even read that Will could be a killer in spite of himself rejecting and hiding his own darkness. It was really chilling and somehow fascinating how the priest was capable of being so insightful. Will hated him, but he had to admit that he was a worthy opponent.

Now he feared Hannibal to kill Alana and Beverly however. He had to be sure that he wouldn’t.

He heard a grunt as Hannibal came and the man stopped moving. Graham caressed the other man’s back thoughtfully, something Hannibal seemed to enjoy. The priest looked at him.

“How do you feel now?”

“You mean after eating human meat?”

“Yes.”

“Impatient. To make my first kill.”

This obviously surprised Hannibal, he wasn’t expecting this. With a delighted smile, he kissed Will. He lay on the side and grabbed his prisoner in his arms, though he didn’t like the proximity, at least it wasn’t as bad as sex.

“Who would you like it to be?”

“A true sinner, someone low.”

“Good, you understand.”

The strangest was that Will actually meant it, he wanted to kill, but not anyone, not someone good, he wanted to kill someone who was hardly worth the air they breathed. He went on being honest, once again because Lecter was the only one around and he needed to talk. And it was about Hobbs, not about any loved ones this time.

“I don’t feel the same toward Hobbs,” he confessed.

“Go ahead.”

“Before I was feeling…Guilty, not for killing him, I had to save his daughter’s life, but for what I felt over it.”

“How did you feel?”

“Righteous. I was sure it was wrong, because I shouldn’t have felt such a thing. But now, it’s different. I had good reasons to feel righteous.”

“Why was this man low according to you?”

“He wanted to kill his daughter, all the girls he killed and devoured were only a preparation. You don’t do that to your family, that’s why he was low.”

He felt Hannibal’s body tense and his arms tightened around him. Did he say something wrong?

“It’s a hideous crime in God’s eyes,” the priest said.

At Will’s surprise, the priest left him, with no other word, and when Lecter turned his eyes away, the profiler understood that for maybe the very first time, Hannibal was scared of what Will could see. He waited for the cannibal to be out to smile hugely. He found something! It was clear to him that he touched a sensitive wound; he had something he could maybe exploit here! Now that he thought about it, he didn’t know anything of Hannibal’s family…Did the priest kill a member of his family and felt guilty over it? He needed to know more, but that would take time, after all if it was a sensitive spot, the doctor would hardly open up to him easily.

He closed his eyes and retreated in his pandemonium. He visualized a large room, all frozen, with icy flames burning at every corner of the room. Books were covering the walls, and a big chair was standing at the end of the room, waiting for him to take place. He selected an imaginary book, this one concerned Lecter, and he sat in the chair and consulted everything he knew about him to determine how he would proceed. He was already manipulating Hannibal into thinking he was slowly becoming his companion, but this was a new matter.

Trying to make him open up with sexual advances would be too obvious and it would also be low for Will. He wanted to use his wits with Lecter, not his body, or maybe his eyes only since the priest had a fondness over it. Cornering the priest in a situation where he would be obliged to tell him about what happened in his past wouldn’t be better. Hannibal wanted to be the one in control, he wouldn’t accept to be cornered, Will couldn’t give him an ultimatum or try to trap him. Tricking him was the best way, but tricking the man was really complicated. Hannibal could read in him, he saw the killer in him, he still hadn’t earned his trust. Earlier that day, Will had been lightly sedated, Lecter explaining him he had guests, if Hannibal didn’t trust him to let him conscious while other people were around, then telling him about his past wasn’t really an option.

Now, he remembered that the best liars would always tell the truth, just twisting it somehow. He was fooling Hannibal already, because even if the priest didn’t think he was ready to be his companion, he was persuaded that Will was on the way for it. If he wanted to bring their relationship into a new level of trust, he needed to make Hannibal see him in another way. The priest was seeing as a killer, as a lover, as a believer, but he wasn’t seeing him as a force of his own. It would be a tricky thing, not to take away Lecter’s control but still showing his power. It was like pack of dogs or wolves, there was a chief yet some members would show that they had to be respected. He could see it in his own family of dogs.

He stopped his reflection there and his heart ached. He had tried avoiding thinking of his dogs but he missed them. In fact the also thought of his old dog Jumper, the one he had during childhood and who died after he kissed a girl. His dad had said God killed the dog because he kissed a girl. Will still thought it was ridiculous, but he didn’t think of it as bitterly. There was something indeed poetic in it, as his dad said, Will was becoming a teenager when Jumper died, symbolically, his childhood died when his teenage hood started. _When your life takes a new turn, something dies, it’s like a cycle_.

Then something hit Will: he was becoming something new. Not like Hannibal, but he was becoming a killer too. Therefore, something of his old life would have to die. But what? More exactly, who?

He wasn’t sure. Maybe Jack Crawford? He hoped so, he wouldn’t regret Jack that much, not that he hated him, but he didn’t like him much. He hoped it wouldn’t be anyone else. He feared again that Lecter could kill Alana or Beverly, and it made him even more determined to show Hannibal he had to be respected, to find that weak spot in order to remind Hannibal that if he tried to do anything to hurt his loved ones, then he would have something to get to the priest.

He spent a long part of the night thinking about this. He awoke very early in the morning, when Hannibal came to bring him food he was already awake, reading the Golden Legend. When the priest came in, Will was reading about St Anthony and when he turned to Hannibal, he could see the man had a smirk on his face. He looked at the illustration of the book, a painting representing the saint rejecting three beautiful naked women.

“I always find it pretty tale-telling that St Anthony’s temptation was often represented by the saint facing demons under the form of beautiful women. Yet the texts about him don’t really insist on that kind of temptation, Jacobus de Voragine doesn’t even mention it. Yet when they heard temptation, people think of it in a sexual way.”

“And you could relate to that.”

“I can. Before taking you with me, I imagined you coming in my office, in my home, trying to tempt me.”

“That’s why you couldn’t resist once in the church.”

“I decided to yield to temptation once I understood a greater good could be done thanks to that.”

This could have sounded like a justification but it wasn’t, Hannibal wasn’t feeling guilty for sinning, to him all of this was grand. It made Will shiver to imagine what the hell the priest could have imagined, what he had been doing during those fantasies…Well, maybe it was better not to know.

“I’ll see you this evening, today is Sunday, the Mass has to be given.”

“Your little sheep need their shepherd,” Will said in a snarky way.

Hannibal just grinned at this before leaving. While he wasn’t here, Graham spent a big part of the day building his mind palace, sometimes reading Dante to imagine his pandemonium. He actually imagined briefly Alana and Beverly again, but this time they were the demons, succubus coming here to tempt him like St Anthony. At first he didn’t like to have a fantasy which could be relatable to what Lecter imagined, but then he realized that many people probably had that kind of fantasy, being tempted by gorgeous creatures…He made his own and for the first time since he was here, he felt sexual arousal while imagining the two women at his side, naked and trying to have his attention. No need to say that unlike St Anthony he didn’t deny it for long.  

Once the priest was back this evening, Will expected him to give him food and discuss with him, but instead, Lecter unchained him and told him to follow him in the living room.

“What do you want to do?”

“I want you to learn how to worship God.”

This made Will froze in place. He knew exactly what Hannibal wanted him to do and he wasn’t expecting that to happen so soon.

“A Sunday, of course, I should have known. It’s the day of God.”

“Yes, I gave the Mass to my parishioners. I must give you yours.”

He laid him in his living room, and gestured him to go to the couch. Will did as he was told slowly and saw a man there, gagged and tied, very awake and scared.

When he saw the man lying on the couch, Will recognized him quite quickly: Lance Grove, a politician, reputed to be particularly corrupted. He was the enemy number one of ecologists around, because he was often attacking protected areas for construction project. Graham heard of him, like a lot of people, and given his love for the woods and nature in general, no need to say the man inspired him no sympathy. He looked at him with some curiosity before turning to Lecter.

“Why him?”

“You said you wanted to kill someone low, well this man is, in spite of his high-position.”

He couldn’t argue against that. Lance was muffling through his gag, throwing Will a desperate look, and old Will would have done everything possible in spite of all the despicable things the man did, but now…He could empathize with him and all he was seeing was a man who never wanted anything but power, wealth and other vain things like this…Frankly, what was this man’s worth? He was hardly better than a pig that couldn’t stop eating and wanted more, always more with no second thoughts.

But then, he remembered his dad, and he felt his determination shake. Robert said one day that whoever took a life was not only hurting a lot of people, but also breaking one of the Ten Commandments and taking something they couldn’t replace again. What would his father say if he could see him standing there, ready to kill at the order of a psychopath? His father would be horrified for sure…

Lance gave a muffled scream again, breaking Will’s thoughts and annoying him in the process. When he looked at his reddened face and desperate eyes, Will started to see him as a pig again. That politician probably didn’t see common people in a better way; to him they were just things to be exploited, nothing more. And Will was a killer; he understood that, even if it would have horrified his dad, he was. Yet he refused to imagine this man as a pig, he didn’t want to see him like Hannibal would.

Instead he looked at him like someone low, stupid and vain, but a human being with a strength which caused destruction…Just like the priest. He gritted his teeth, he didn’t even think even further, he punched the man hard, just to make his cry stop and because his punch only intensified it, he seized his throat and tightened his hold. Before, he wondered if it would be hard or easy to actually take a life, now he discovered that it wasn’t difficult, he just had to seize it and extinguish it.

He imagined Hannibal instead of Lance, smothering under him, he imagined it was the priest’s neck he was strangling, and he took pleasure in seeing Lance’s face turn purple and eventually die. Then he saw Lance’s face again, the very moment of his death was too powerful to ignore who it really was. He saw the man’s eyes lose their lights, his rigid body went unmoving, and there, this life was no more. Will contemplated him, his hands still on his neck, it was incredible. It felt powerful, it felt incredible and easy. So easy…He let go of the neck he was holding and Hannibal put a hand over his shoulders.

“How do you feel?”

“Righteous…And relieved. Like there was a weight lifted off my shoulders. It was…Intimate.”

“Of course, it creates a powerful bond to take someone’s life.”

“Only to destroy it as quickly.”

“This brevity of it makes it even more touching. Did you see myself when you killed him.”

Will looked at him in eyes and for once, he didn’t have to force himself, because for once, the priest wasn’t enemy, but a mirror where he could contemplate his own image. He didn’t need to say it, Lecter knew.

“I never felt more alive.”

Hannibal smiled, mirroring the smile Will made internally. He straightened his stance and made a slight step toward Lecter.

“You made me reveal my own self, not only to me but to you.”

Hannibal frowned but remained silent.

“I want some reciprocity.”


	14. Beatrice in Hell

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, so this is a long chapter and I hope you'll like it. It took time to figure out how I should write it but I'm quite satisfied.

“Reciprocity?”

Will knew this was risky, he knew it, he was no fool, but he had to do this.

“Reveal me something about you. Reveal me how you came this way.”

The cannibal advanced toward him and Graham felt like backing off, he saw the monster again, the threatening monster Hannibal really was. Lecter stalked toward him, making him back away against a wall. The priest put both hands at each side of his shoulders, their bodies brushing.

“You have an idea in mind.”

“When I spoke about Hobbs, trying to kill his daughter, your reaction was tale-telling. I guessed something happened.”

“There are things which should remain in the past, Will.”

“You took me because I could see through you, because I could know you.”

He had kept his gaze away, looking at Hannibal’s mouth or collar, but when he said that, he looked at Hannibal in the eyes, as if he wanted to get to the depths of his soul. The priest couldn’t look away and the profiler knew he was hooked.

“Let me know you.”

The priest and he were still looking at each other and a long moment passed. Will could feel it all, the need to speak, the temptation to yield, but also the reluctance, the wariness and the fear. Yes, there was fear in the Ripper, because Will was close to the priest’s weakness, he would uncover whatever made the Ripper. This was probably a very old wound, buried beneath and man and monster which both made Hannibal Lecter, buried in the depths of each of them. Leaning in closer, Hannibal whispered in his ear.

“Your eyes are probably the most beautiful thing I ever encountered and the most dangerous too…So icy, like those of an angel full of wrath and able to see through anything.”

“I’m not asking you to reveal yourself now…Later if you want, when you’ll be ready, but one day, if you really want this to work, you’ll have to let me know.”

Hannibal seemed to relax at this. He kissed Will’s temple with affection, and for the very first time, Will really wondered how he would have reacted if things happened differently. What would he have done if the priest had tried to seduce him and not raped him? If he had been gentle and not forceful? To be honest, he had never been sure of what he wanted about his sexuality, maybe he would have actually acknowledged his advances if the priest didn’t rape him but seduced him. For a second, he envisioned what their future could have been in that case. What an idiot Hannibal had been.

The cannibal continued to kiss him endlessly, and he tugged on his arm to make him lay on the floor, near the corpse who was still on the couch. Will realized he could actually try to escape right now, he could actually take advantage of the priest distraction, knock him out and run away. He wasn’t chained, he could do it. But no, not anymore. If he gave Lecter to the police right now, then the priest could tell the police he willingly eat human meat, that he killed a man at his order, and he would tell them what happened in the church, what happened almost every night in that basement…No, he couldn’t give the priest to the police. Anyway, he didn’t want to run away, not anymore, he had to win.

 

**O o O**

Once they were back in the cellar, Hannibal chained his captive again silently, then sat on the bed at his side.

“I’ll think of what you said. But there is something I want to do.”

“What is it?”

“I want to give you a drug again, but this time with your full consent.”

At the memory of the time when he had been drugged, of all the hideous things he saw and heard, Will’s stomach tightened and he shook his head. He could still see the demon he imagined at times and it still terrified him.

“There is no way I’ll be tied and drugged again.”

“I won’t tie you, and this drug shouldn’t give you wrong visions, don’t worry. You still have some things to free in your psyche and this should help you,” he passed a hand on Will’s cheek. “I know it wasn’t easy for you the first time, but trust me, this time, it will be much better.”

To be honest, Will didn’t know what Hannibal’s purpose really was: did he want to punish him for his curiosity or did he really want to make him ‘release things from his psyche’? Whatever, he wasn’t sure about it, asking Hannibal to reveal his past might have made the man defiant or angry, he needed to play safe.

“What would happen?”

“You’ll simply lie on the bed and let the drug have its effects, and then we would talk.”

“About what?”

“About what you felt while you were killing that man for example, we can deepen our conversation about it.”

“I’d rather not talk about it while I’m drugged; I prefer to keep a clear mind to really give you my impressions.”

“Fine, then we can just talk about the books I gave you to read and what I could give you then. The most important is not what we will talk about but what you’ll envision and realize during this session.”

“You talk like a psychiatrist.”

“According to our common friend Alana, I could have been one.”

Hearing Alana’s name in his mouth made Will’s gut tighten, he didn’t like to know that Hannibal could think about her, he hoped she was fine. He wondered if he would ever see her again…

“What do you plan for us, after all this?”

“We won’t stay here, I faked your death so you can’t wander around. We will find a life elsewhere. If you can learn Italian, I could show you Florence.”

As he finished this sentence, the priest stood up and exited the room, probably to get whatever they needed for their session. Will sighed, if they did go in Italia, Will would tell him he lied and knew how to speak Italian but he doubted such a thing would happen. Would he follow Lecter there? He was disgusted by the very idea of it. On the other hand, now that everyone thought he was dead, he was free. He could live the life he wished, kill if he wished, no one would look for a dead man. He could follow the priest for a short time, just to make him think that his crazy desires came true, and then, he would stab him in the back, torture him and reduce him in pieces…Oh yes, that would be good.

Yet Will knew he would misses things from his old life, like his few friends, or his dogs, or his job as a teacher. He couldn’t run away with his dogs, seven dogs were way too much to travel unseen. He could adopt others, but he would miss the other ones, Winston in particular, the newbie became one of his favorite, even if it was a little unfair for the others. He remembered how he found the poor thing on a road, wandering, scared, dirty and hungry; it was obvious he had been abandoned. Will had taken pity on him and felt love very soon.

Hannibal had a syringe in his hands but no ropes this time, at least he had been honest on that. Will let him inject the drug in his system, still nervous but knowing he didn’t have much choice in the matter.

“Lay down, make yourself comfortable.”

Will obeyed and waited, for now his mind was still clear.

“I trust you not to take advantage of the situation.”

“That would be rude.”

Yeah, as if knocking him down and raping him hadn’t been ‘rude’… The priest was seriously screwed up. This made Will laugh and he felt that he was starting already to feel lighter, it wasn’t a bad sensation to be honest, actually he felt relaxed.

“You’re starting to feel it, aren’t you?”

“Oh yes…Much better than the first time.”

“The first time had been rough, this one will be more…Entertaining for you. Tell me Will, what did you read today?”

“Dante and the Golden Legend.”

“Which one do you prefer?”

“Dante, It’s so messed up.”

“Really?”

Lecter’s voice was starting to be more distant, like an echo. Will laughed again, it was probably not the kind of words Lecter expected him to say.

“All those demons and those punishment, when I think about it, there was certainly some masochism in this, imagining all this pain…No it could be sadism actually, because Dante doesn’t suffer, he just watches other suffer. Like you, Hannibal.”

“But I’m not Dante, you are.”

“Ah yeah, I forgot, Dante and Virgil…Virgil cannot go to heaven, is that why the Virgil you are wants to keep the Dante I am in Hell?”

Hannibal smiled, or at least the quite blurry vision of Hannibal smiled at those awkward words Will babbled. A part of him was aware he wasn’t speaking very clearly but he couldn’t care less, he was like floating, his head felt numb and unable to process much, except for Hannibal’s words. In fact at that point, he as starting to forget what he was saying as soon as he pronounced the words.

Time was blurry too, and it certainly took drugs for that but he actually felt kind of comfortable around Lecter for the very first time. He wondered what he gave him, it was definitely good. He floated and then drifted into sleep, a sleep without nightmare, a foggy but comfortable sleep.

 

**O o O**

Will woke up the next morning, feeling quite nauseous but still relaxed. There was a tray of food next to his bed. His body was numb, and he didn’t like that but at least he slept peacefully.

It took time to regain his spirit totally, and he realized with some fear that he had no idea of what he did talk about with Hannibal. What if he revealed him that he had no intention to stay with him? What if he revealed his plans to the priest? He hoped not, otherwise, he was screwed! He couldn’t help but imagine himself, delirious and laughing, explaining Hannibal he only wanted to destroy him and had no desire to stay with him…He prayed God it didn’t happen.

Another look at the food, and Will felt doubts about that. If he had told everything to Lecter, he would maybe be dead, or hurt, but certainly not lying in this bed as usual, with food waiting for him. Except maybe if the priest wanted to trick him and let him believe he wasn’t aware of his plan…Some kind of double-trick? Will wasn’t sure, but he would only know once the priest was here, once he would be able to look in his eyes.

He didn’t know how much time passed, but it was quite a torture to wait without knowing, he couldn’t even distract himself with the books or go to his new mind palace to find comfort, because he was too distracted by the possibility of Lecter knowing.

 The door opened, Will didn’t know what time it was, but he was pretty sure it wasn’t the evening yet.

“Hello Will.”

“Hello, Father. Aren’t you early?”

“I wasn’t working today. Instead I took care of some tasks, while you were resting.”

“What did I say while I was drugged? I have no memory.”

“You were mostly babbling, but you told me something interesting.”

Will’s gut tightened. At Lecter’s smile, it seemed like it wasn’t something bad, but he couldn’t be sure, the man was a damn good actor after all. He couldn’t show his nervousness, it could betray him, yet it wasn’t easy, he was trading in dangerous water, he could feel it. There was something in Hannibal’s expression which wasn’t reassuring at all. The priest put a hand on his cheek.

“What’s wrong?”

“I don’t like being unable to remember. What is it I said?”

“Let’s say that through our conversation, you designated your next kill.”

He did that?! Who the hell did he thought about? Or did he even express the wish to kill that person or had Hannibal interpreted his words in a twisted way?  

“Who?”

“You’ll see.”

His heart beat faster; he could hear it in his ears. Oh God, what did he say? Who was the next one? The priest started to unchain him…Why was he doing that? Will had the intuition why but he feared to face it. Yet he had to, whether Hannibal misinterpreted his or he had pointed out someone and expressed the wish to kill them, what was happening was his fault.

“Is that person here?”

“They are waiting nicely for us in the living room.”

Oh Lord! Lord, not this! Who could it be? He remembered how he thought of killing Jack Crawford, because he wouldn’t miss Jack this much? Was it him? Was it his boss? He wasn’t sure he wanted to kill Jack now, the guy might have been a jerk at times, he didn’t hate him, and he didn’t really want his death. He was a killer, yes, but he wasn’t sure he would be able to kill the people he was close to.

When his foot was free, Hannibal took his wrist and pulled him gently to go upstairs. The priest had a knife, and his captive wasn’t sure if it was for the ‘guest’ or for him in case of disobedience. Will’s gut couldn’t stop but tighten and his legs felt numb, imagining different possibility, Alana mostly. He felt Hannibal had a plan, he knew it wasn’t like Lance. When they were finally in the living room, his eyes went on the couch because he knew that the next victim was there, but he could only see the back of it, and not who was in it. He turned to Hannibal.

“Go ahead, if you succeed, you’ll definitely have my trust.”

It was very clear, it meant it was someone close. Hannibal was expecting him to kill someone he liked to strengthen their bonds, he wanted Will to sacrifice a friend, just like Lecter sacrificed Father Lowry…He walked toward it, his breathing getting sharper and when he saw who was here, his heart missed a beat and he felt the blood drain from his face.

“No…”

“This is the next path, Will. Remember, Dante is led through Hell by Virgil who can't go to heaven because he wasn't christianized. His beloved Beatrice, who died before him, go to him once he is out of hell to led him through Heaven. Now it's time for your Beatrice to lead you through heaven. Our heaven.”

On the couch, tied and gagged though she was still unconscious, none other than Beverly Katz was lying, her jet black hair spread and some blood running on her temple.

Will turned to Lecter, not bothering to hide, after all the priest made a promise and he just broke it, he had every right to be furious!

“You can’t do this!”

“Why not? Didn’t you decide to follow my path?”

“I did, but there are people I don’t wish to kill! I asked you to spare her and Alana…”

“And I promised I wouldn’t kill them. Not that you wouldn’t.”

He huffed but it almost sounded like a sob, and he avoided looking at the priest, it would make him sick otherwise. Taking a deep breath, he closed his eyes and tried to think rationally. Yes, he had to avoid looking at Hannibal, he wouldn’t be able to hide anymore and even if such a state, he was still aware that he had to continue to play the game.

“I will tell you more about myself, I will tell what you wanted to know, I will reveal myself to you if you do this.”

This sent a shiver through Will’s body. Had it been someone like Lance, he wouldn’t have hesitated, knowing Lecter’s weakness was like receiving his head on a plate, but here it was Beverly. Killing her was beyond him, yet he was so close to finally have what could allow him to destroy Hannibal, to rip his soul into pieces, just like he tore Will’s soul into pieces in the church. The perfect tool for his revenge was right here at his reach…

They heard a groan and Beverly started to move slightly. She should have continued to sleep, to stay in oblivion, Will wasn’t sure he wanted to cross her eyes, but he would have to now. Hannibal put a hand on his shoulder, pressed himself against Will’s back and whispered in Will’s ear.

“When I drugged you the first time, I heard you pronounce her name, several time. I understood she was important and the second time, I asked you if you were Dante and I Virgil, then who was your Beatrice? It’s her name you gave me, I would have bet on Alana to be honest, I’m glad I didn’t take a wild guess.”

So that was it…He didn’t ask to have Bev killed, it was just another fantasy from Hannibal…

She opened her eyes, blinked and saw both Will and Lecter. Her eyes widened at such a sight and Will tried to go to her, not even thinking, but Hannibal stopped him and put the knife at his neck, making Beverly release a muffled scream. She seemed even more panicked when she realized she was bound and gagged.

“Don’t resist me. Will, you’re on the right path, with this you’ll finally access salvation and so will I.”

“She is not a sinner.”

“We all are. If you don’t do it, I will be forced to break my promise. She can’t leave this place alive.”

This made Will think, he didn’t know what to do. Lecter sensed his hesitation and Beverly too, she was throwing Graham a pleading look, while letting out muffled winces. Lecter smiled to Will, his knife was still on his prisoner’s neck and he understood that if he didn’t fulfill his wish, then Hannibal would kill him, metaphorically or literally, but he would, because he wouldn’t accept a failure.

“Look at her, look at your Beatrice. She is not flesh and blood anymore, she is light and color, begging to be freed from that prison of flesh. Make her what she is to you, sent her into those heavens she belongs in, make her the saint who will open the path.”

He looked indeed at Beverly, his Beatrice indeed, his own angel, the one whom he thought about so many times. She was looking at him with fear and hope, pleading him silently not to kill her. He wouldn’t be able to do that. He had to be someone else if he wanted to do this. So he closed his eyes and used his imagination, he put himself in the mind of Hannibal Lecter, the man who brought her here, the man who wanted to see her being transformed.

He visualized himself standing before her, while she was bound, and another image came in his mind: The Red and dragon and the woman bathed in the sun. It was exactly that. The two images melted into one and this time the woman had Beverly’s hair and face. Then, it was him who was standing as a dragon, before this luminous woman, holding her life in the palm of his hands. He saw himself tearing her flesh, making her blood flow and then…

Then Beverly would become nothing but a blinding light. 

He opened his eyes and considered her, she wasn’t the most beautiful woman he met, but she was beautiful in a way.

“I’m sorry, Beverly.”

He turned to Hannibal, the man saw resolution in his eyes, and Hannibal handed him the knife.

“What do you see?”

“The woman bathed in the sun and the Red Dragon.”

“Good. Go on.”

With no warning whatsoever, Will plunged the knife, earning a scream from Beverly, and blood tainted the blade. He didn’t wait and plunged it again, stabbed and stabbed, a hundred drops of blood tainted his clothes and even his face when the blade went through the heart. The body fell on the floor and Will looked at it not knowing if he should finally feel free or unhappy.

He continued to stab multiple times until he felt the need to catch his breath again. He stood up then, looking at his work. The drops of crimson liquid went on the floor and it seemed like time had stopped.

Near him, still on the couch, Beverly was looking at the corpse with horrified eyes, it wasn’t the first corpse she would see, it wasn’t the first person she would see being killed, but she had never seen one getting actually murdered brutally by one of her colleagues. The priest was laying the floor, blood oozing out of his body.

Will turned to her and smiled the knife still in his hands.  For a moment, she saw someone else in his eyes.

This was it, he had killed his torturer, and it had been way quicker than what he hoped. He imagined the way he could make Lecter slowly suffer and shatter him into pieces, break him, take the power over him and finally kill him…But no. He would never know what kind of secret he was hiding, what made the priest, what made the man who forced Will to face his inner self…

A muffled sound took him out of his thought and he looked at the captive woman. The feeling changed then, he didn’t accomplish his vengeance as he had wished, but he won. He was feeling like the powerful dragon, he was free in every way, free of the chain Lecter put on him, of the chains he once put on himself! And Beverly, his woman clothed in the sun, was lying before him while he was standing... She was obviously scared…Looking one last time, at the corpse, he coldly thought that after all he did as the priest wished, he killed a sinner. May God send his soul where it belonged.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Will finally did it! Don't hesitate to tell me what you think, concluding a story is always tough for me, so I will be glad to know your opinion on the way this fic is ending. There will be one last chapter to conclude this one, I'll try to update it soon enough. Anyway, I want to give kisses to all those who gave me kudos and comments, it was really nice of you all!


	15. Marriage of Heaven and Hell

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everybody! So here is the last chapter, the epilogue (sort of), and I really liked writing it, even if took long because concluding stories is something pretty hard for me. Also, I was very glad to find a vid with Hnanibal and Hellfire, the song isn't whole sadly and I wonder what Mason is doing in this, but it's still nice, here is the link for those interested: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I3EDqVTg7bY
> 
> By the way, this chapter's title is one of William Blake's work: Marriage of Heaven and Hell, I recommend it. Enjoy this chapter!

Not losing time anymore, Will went to the bound woman and seeing her panicked face, he realized she was probably still scared, after all he was covered by the blood of the man he just killed, so he reassured her:

“Don’t worry, I won’t hurt you.”

He undid her gag and she breathed in deeply, he started to untie her hands, the look on her face gripped his heart again, he felt even happier with his choice. No way would he have killed Beverly for Lecter or his revenge.

“Will, what’s happening? What happened to you?”

“He tried to make me become like him, he tried to brainwash me, but he failed!”

As he said that, the ropes around her hands fell on the ground and before he could go and untie her feet, she threw herself at him and hugged him, she was trembling from the shock. He returned the gesture and found much more comfort than expected.

“It’s okay, he is dead…” He whispered that for both of them.

Everything went slowly and quickly, clearly and blurry. It was pretty much what Will hoped for at the beginning of his captivity.

They called the cops; Jack also came as well as the rest of the science team, all of them relieved to see Will and Beverly alive. Graham pretended he had been only abused mentally and physically, he knew it was wrong not to acknowledge what happened, but he couldn’t say it, not before all those people. Beverly told everyone how she was kidnapped while going home, brought here and how Will killed Lecter to protect her. They were both brought at hospital, though Beverly had only minor injuries.

Jack was the one who interviewed him once the doctors allowed him to, and Will could hardly remember a time when he had been nicer.

“Hey. How are you feeling?”

“I don’t know…It’s hum…It’s almost strange to think I’m finally free. How is Beverly?”

“She’ll be fine. It had been a traumatic experience but I’m sure she’ll recover. What about you?”

“I guess I should feel shocked for killing a man…But I don’t. Not for him. I just feel tired.”

“The Ripper kept you prisoner all that time, no one is expecting you to weep for him.”

At this Will had a bitter smile.

“Alana is on her way. She took care of your dogs, we both did.”

“Thank you…How are they?”

“Fine, one of them went back at your house every day; Winston I think.”

It made Will smile again but for real this time, he was happy to know his dogs were alright and impatient to see them again.

“Will, I have to ask you what happened.”

“He kidnapped me…I wanted to talk to him, Alana told me he was a friend of hers and that he had knowledge in psychiatry. So I thought it could be a good idea to ask for his advice on the case.”

“So you went to see him.”

“Yes, only to talk, but he thought I suspected him.”

“Why?”

“I don’t know, probably because I asked him questions twice before. He didn’t even give me time to explain why I was here. He just knocked me out. After that I woke up in that room.”

“Why didn’t he kill you?”

“He told me Alana spoke about me and my…My profile interested him, my empathy more exactly, he thought I could be like him.”

That wasn’t completely a lie, that’s why Jack believed him, the best liars twist the truth instead of saying blatant lies. Will told him how Hannibal used mental and occasionally physical torture. He still omitted the rapes; he didn’t want anyone to know about it.

“I acted as if it was working, the brainwashing…But I still refused to eat human remains…”

“What?”

Both Will and Crawford were stunned, Jack to hear such a thing, and Will to see that he didn’t get it sooner.

“You didn’t understand already? The missing parts on his victims, he ate those. He was a cannibal, Jack.”

“Holy fuck, you were imprisoned by a cannibal?!”

“Yeah…He wanted to eat their remains, he said it was the best way to celebrate God, kill and eat sinners.”

“Christ…What did you do?”

“I always avoided it, saying I wasn’t ready for it, even if I believed him and…”

“What?”

“He brought Beverly. He said that if I didn’t want to eat a sinner, at least I had to kill a sinner. I never thought he would do it! I tried to tell him she wasn’t a sinner, then he said we all were. He said he would do it himself otherwise…So I said I would do it, so he would hand me the knife…And I killed him.”

“Bev owes you her life. I saw her earlier, she is really thankful.”

Will nodded thoughtfully. Jack was right, she owed him his life, and therefore…Therefore she belonged to him. He wouldn’t allow anyone to touch her, not only because she was his possession, but because she was a good woman, he would kill anyone who would dare to hurt her! Somehow, the idea that he had some kind of ownership over Beverly made him felt better. A little voice in his mind was telling him that it was wrong, that Beverly didn’t belong to anyone, that he wouldn’t be better than Hannibal, but Will made it shut up. He wouldn’t do to Beverly what Hannibal did to him, never, but she belonged to him. 

Jack left and when night had fallen, he went out of his room. The corridors were almost empty except for some shapes of nurses walking like ghosts, though before Will didn’t like hospital, there was something peaceful in this atmosphere, it was all neutral, with no personality to infest it. He had obtained Bev’s room number from a nurse and he went there. He found her in her bed, an old woman was sharing her room but she was sleeping. Upon his sight, Beverly smiled warmly, and she sat upright while he took a chair to be at her side.

“How are you feeling?”

They spoke at the same time, both concerned. She giggled with no joy, while Will just huffed.

“Go ahead first,” he offered.

“I’m…I don’t know, I just can’t stop thinking about it. All the day I thought of how he captured me and when I woke up and saw you…I’m sorry Will.”

“Why?”

“I really thought you were about to kill me, I should have known...”

“Bev, I was doing everything to be convincing. I had to convince both of you if I wanted him to give me the knife. It’s me who’s sorry.”

“Why would you be? You saved my life.”

Oh yes he did, and he felt once again that her life was his.

“I spoke your name. He drugged me twice, for fun. And when I was drugged I called you, apparently.”

“You did?”

“Yes, I would see you and apparently I called your name several times.”

It seemed to astonish her, her big eyes seemed so innocent in spite of what she saw and his love for her only grew. He couldn’t help but take her hand into his and she squeezed it lightly.

“I was calling for you because…I don’t know it’s stupid but after the coffee we took, I felt a little closer to you. You’re one of the few people who know about my father. It comforted me to think of you. And because I called for you, he decided that the test to see if he could trust me was to have me kill you.”

“Obviously he couldn’t trust you.”

Will smiled slightly at this, feeling triumphal again.

“Oh no, he couldn’t.”

A silence passed, quite comfortable, they were both simply thinking, trying to make a point.

“Why you? Why didn’t he kill you?”

He told her the same lie he told Jack, he hated that, lying to her felt like spitting snakes, but he had no choices, he had to do this otherwise she would see him as weak and tainted and he couldn’t bear it.

“The Ripper wanted a friend…It’s so strange to say that,” she whispered once she heard everything.

“I know, it was even stranger to go through this. I acted as I was buying all of it, to gain his trust and to be freed. But to be sure he could trust me…Well I already told you.”

“How do you feel?”

She wasn’t the first one to ask that question, but it was the first time the question actually seemed to matter to him. How was he feeling indeed?

“A part of me feels free, but the other one still feel like I’m still in the basement. He told me that room hadn’t been made for me especially; he took other people before me. When I was in there, I tried not to think of them, but now I wonder who they were. I somehow feel like one of them even if I’m alive. I’m relieved I could kill him, I don’t have any regret, especially because it meant saving you. Yet it was as if…It was all too simple.”

She caressed his cheek and he nuzzled into the touch, naturally. He told her to rest, and left her, not because he wanted to but because he felt that it was time to leave her, he didn’t want to invade her space too much, he knew too well how horrible it could be.  Beverly told him to try to get rest as well, before cocooning herself in the hospital bed.

They went out of hospital quickly, their wounds weren’t really serious. When he went home, he saw his dogs running toward him, and he saw Alana too. She was crying and she apologized profusely for talking to him about Lecter.

“If I had the good idea to shut up…”

“If you had the idea to shut up he would have killed me, Alana, he attacked me because he thought I was suspecting him but he spared me because what you said interested him. He would have simply killed me otherwise…”

He smiled to her, he was lying again, partially at least, but it was true he had no hard feelings for Alana, Lecter had desire for him and that had been his doom, not Bloom. She hugged him tightly, and he told her he would be alright.

“You can’t work for Jack again. You have to be a teacher again or whatever job which will be safe. This can’t happen again, I was so scared!”

She was right, he knew it. He promised himself he would protect Alana too, she wasn’t as important as Beverly but he liked her.

He was given time to rest of course. No one learned about             Lecter’s desire for him, or that he ate human flesh and killed Lance, thank God, no one did. Yet his colleagues learned of the whipping because of the scars on his back, they learned Hannibal drugged him and tried to brainwash him and just because of that, Graham felt really exposed. He was even happier that no one knew about the rape. He couldn’t have handled it.

Beverly was also given some time off and they both had to attend sessions with a psychanalyst. Will and she spent time together; very often victims didn’t like to spend time together because it would remind them of what happened to them, it wasn’t their case. It would have been if they had speak solely about what happened but no, they would also speak of each other, of their pasts, of their daily life, of what they liked and disliked. They had the same tastes in music; they both liked Jim Morrison a lot. It helped them to create a bond based on something else than Hannibal Lecter.

It wasn’t long for Graham to understand he was in love with her. He knew he had to seduce her, so she would be his, and he felt he had his chances. He would catch her looking at him sometimes, and he was pretty sure to know what she had in mind. It delighted and scared him at first. Sexual interaction of any kind would remind him of Lecter, yet he kept thinking it wouldn’t be the same with Beverly, plus with her, he felt powerful, not like a victim but a savior and it gave him a sense of security.

The only thing which was still nagging crazily was the death of Lecter, the quickness of it. Even though he had won, even though Will was happy he saved Beverly, what tormented him was that Hannibal got a quick death, violent but quick. He should have been able to tear him apart mentally and emotionally before stabbing him, he wished he had known this very secret, this event which made Hannibal. He understood it involved a member of his family, but he didn’t know who and how. Not knowing could be a torture. He couldn’t kill Hannibal again, he couldn’t resurrect him and torture him as he wished. So he passed his nerves on other people.

God wanted him to be a killer, he understood that. Yet he wouldn’t kill anyone good like Hannibal would. Will used his empathy on people, and whenever he would see someone who seemed to be bad, then he would target them. He would follow them, check if he was wrong or right, and then he would kill them. He killed two people already, he would enter their home, subdue them, tie them, force them to confess their sins and once it was done, he would stab them multiple times. Jack and the FBI investigated the case but they didn’t find anything.

Two month passed and Graham still had nightmares from what happened. Sometimes he would dream that Hannibal was back and he was unable to do anything while the priest would torture and rape him. Will was pretty sure that if he had destroyed Lecter completely, he wouldn’t have had those nightmares. Yet he couldn’t change what happened, he never would be able to, and that was tearing him apart when he thought about it. Passing his nerves on other people relieved him for a short time only.

He didn’t work for Jack anymore, Crawford didn’t dare to ask, he was a teacher again however. He would meet some of his ex-colleagues again from time to time, and that how one day, he surprised Brian Zeller asking Beverly on a date. He didn’t say anything, didn’t show anything, but he felt so furious and so jealous he could have exploded. The only thing which soothed him was Bev’s polite refusal, and he savored the look of deception on Brian’s face.

Yet he could have killed Zeller for that, honestly he thought of it. If only she could see he was the one who truly loved her! But he didn’t kill Brian because it would have hurt her and he would have to lie to her, and he was lying enough. Plus, even if Will didn’t like him, Brian wasn’t bad, and he knew it. So instead, he tried something else: he invited her for a dinner. They already had dinners together once or twice, but it had been more like a friendly time and not a date. This time, it was more like a date, in a beautiful restaurant, not too classy or too fancy, but still elegant and agreeable. Things went very well, and she proposed him to stay at her home because it was late and he lived far away, he would be too tired to drive. He accepted, he would sleep on the couch of course.

He entered her home and felt happy to see it. It wasn’t anything special; the flat was a little messy, not too sophisticated but pleasant, lively. He sat on the couch and she poured them drinks, they spoke together, for a long time. They spoke of what happened to them, they spoke about going on and being stronger. Beverly eventually got closer and Will kissed her. He didn’t spend the night on the couch.

Making love with her had been fantastic; he felt the sensation to be free again. It was so different than with Lecter, sleeping with the priest had been painful; it was like sleeping with a demon. Now he was the demon and he was with an angel, an angel who embraced him. He felt only pleasure and an intense happiness of having her, having his Beatrice, his angel, his Beverly…

Their relationship started from then, but it felt more natural than with any other women he ever met in the past. He could see jealous glances from Zeller and for that he was glad he didn’t kill him, it was worth it, seeing that man envy him.

He still killed people, but he took his time for each killing, he wasn’t feeling impatient, or impulsive, no. Lack of time was what messed up his revenge on Lecter and he wouldn’t do this mistake again. No, he would kill only despicable people, even if he had to kill a few, and of course, he would never eat them. He was his own kind of killer, different from Hannibal and even if the nagging feeling of an uncomplete revenge against him remained, even if he still had nightmares to poison his nights, he was happy.

“Sometimes, it feels like he got us closer somehow,” Beverly murmured one day when they were at a park, lying under a tree. “What happened with Lecter.”

“My father used to say that hardship makes us stronger and can bring unexpected happiness. God’s way of rewarding us.”

“It’s pretty strange to see you being religious now, after being assaulted by a priest,” she admitted.

“It’s maybe because he showed such a crazy side of religion that the rest didn’t seem so bad after all,” he explained. “I thought of my father, I can even confess that to you, I prayed at times. It helped. Eventually I was free and I even saved you. Now I’m happier than before. That’s why.”

She smiled to him and kissed him, then put her head against his chest to listen to his heartbeat. They continued to speak, and he was happy to hold her. He didn’t know how long it would last, if God wanted, they would marry, or maybe she would leave him. He would let her, even if she wasn’t his woman anymore, even if she started another life with another man, she would always be his somehow. The angel and the demon were together now, heaven and hell united. Will couldn’t help but think that image would have been poetic to Hannibal if he had succeeded to see beyond his jealousy.

For a moment, he imagined that one of Hannibal’s punishments in hell was to be forced to watch the two of them happy together, having sex and starting a new life. He smiled. That would be a sweet punishment indeed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, so here it ends! I would like to thanks all of those who supported me, I really enjoyed writing this fic and I hope you liked the end. To be honest, I didn't think this would en with Will and Bev getting together but in the end, I like it!
> 
> After that fic, I had the idea for a new story, a little more special. It would be an Hannibal fic but with a strawpoll at the end of each chapters, and the readers would vote for the option they like the most. Tell me what you think about this, if you think that would be fun or not.
> 
> Kisses to you all!!!


	16. Bonus

The Hellfire video I was asking for was done by Matilda! Here is the link, I find it awesome: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F67jNF3_lBQ  
Check it out, I loved it! Thanks a lot for it!


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